Sen. Dianne Feinstein accused the trustees of her late husband’s estate of financial elder abuse, asked they be removed from their position, and charged them with improperly financially enriched his three daughters.
The lawsuit was filed on Aug. 8 in the California Superior Court in the County of San Francisco by the senator’s daughter, Katherine Feinstein, who has power of attorney for her.
The 90-year-old Democratic senator from California has suffered from poor health in the past year, including a case of shingles that kept her away from the Senate for a month. She also fell at her San Francisco home last week and was briefly hospitalized.
Feinstein and her late husband, Richard Blum, married in 1980 and lived together until Blum’s death in early 2022.
The lawsuit alleges that the trustees committed ‘financial abuse’ of Feinstein by ‘wrongfully withholding distributions to which (her late husband’s) trust entitles her in bad faith and diverting assets that they should have used to fund’ the senator’s trust.
The filing was first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Feinstein gave her daughter power of attorney on July 23rd to allow Katherine Feinstein to act as her representative in litigation matters, according to the suit.
She has filed three lawsuits – in June, July and August – against the trustees as she seeks to access her late husband’s assets.
Steven Braccini, the attorney representing co-trustees Michael Klein and Marc Scholvinck, previously told the Chronicle that they have ‘never denied any disbursement to Senator Feinstein.’
But Feinsteint’s latest lawsuit says: ‘The Trustees have failed to respond to any requests for disbursements, which is a de facto denial.’
Klein says Feinstein has been receiving $125,000 each quarter in response to her June lawsuit.
Blum was reportedly a billionaire at the time of his death. Feinstein is also independently wealthy, separate from her husband’s finances.
The lawsuit also alleges the trustees have improperly ‘funded gifts to Blum’s daughters or forgiven their indebtedness,’ prior to giving Feinstein what the trust dictates she should receive.
Each of Blum’s three daughters stands to inherit at least $22 million after Feinstein’s death if the funds are available, according to his trust.
Braccini told the newspaper that the trustees ‘have acted ethically and appropriately at all times; the same cannot be said for Katherine Feinstein. This filing is unconscionable. The trustees have always respected Senator Feinstein and always will. But this has nothing to do with her needs and everything to do with her daughter’s avarice.’
Feinstein’s July lawsuit said she has been unable to access Blum’s assets to pay for ‘significant medical expenses’ after a bout with shingles. Feinstein is covered by Medicare and the DC Health Link, which provides health plans for members of Congress.
The senator was diagnosed with the shingles virus in late February and hospitalized in early March. She was absent from the Senate for three months and still dealing with medical complications.
A hearing for the June case is scheduled for Monday and the July case is scheduled for Sept. 5.
