A recent California appellate case clarifies the application of the statute of limitations to trust amendments.

In Smith v. Myers (2024) 103 Cal.App.5th 586, a dispute arose between the decedent’s children and his widow over a 54.2% interest in a ranch. Notably, the widow was not the mother of the decedent’s children.

After the decedent’s first wife passed away in 1992, he granted 45.8% of the ranch to his children. Seven years later, in 1999, the decedent remarried, and in 2000, he established a trust naming his widow as the beneficiary of the remaining 54.2% interest. However, in 2016—just one month before his death—the decedent amended the trust, leaving the ranch interest to his children instead.

When the decedent died, his widow served as trustee, which likely delayed the filing of the petition to enforce the amendment. Nearly four years after the decedent’s death, the children petitioned for the transfer of the ranch. The widow contested the petition, arguing it was time-barred by California Code of Civil Procedure section 366.3, which imposes a one-year statute of limitations for claims based on promises or agreements made by a decedent.

The court, however, rejected this argument. It ruled that the trust amendment was not a “promise or agreement” under CCP 366.3. Instead, it was a revocable directive concerning the trustee’s duties. It did not bind the Decedent. And it did not bind the beneficiary. So it could not be a promise or agreement. The amendment imposed no obligation on the decedent or the beneficiaries during his lifetime—only on the trustee to distribute the property after his death.

This case highlights the critical distinction between trust amendments and decedent promises or agreements, which are subject to different legal timeframes. While the children’s petition was not barred by the one-year limitation, this case underscores the importance of timely action when enforcing trust amendments. Delays complicate litigation and jeopardize the enforcement of rights. And in trust administration they delay the right to control.