Nick Reiner’s legal team has filed new documents in Los Angeles Superior Court claiming he has not been able to access any money from his family trust while he awaits trial for the murders of his parents, Rob and Michele Singer Reiner. According to his attorneys, Anita P. Wu and Geoffrey A. Neri, he cannot pay for basic jail commissary items or re-engage criminal defense counsel, and they say he hasn’t been able to get even five dollars from the trust.
The trustees, successor trustee Jodi Pais Montgomery and former trustee Paul R. Kanin, are citing California’s“Slayer Statute,”a law that prevents anyone who intentionally kills a decedent from inheriting their assets. The trust in question is valued at approximately $1.5 million. Nick, 32, first sought his share back in June, arguing he should have received half of it when he turned 30. He has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder with special circumstance allegations.
What makes this case unusual is the collision of two legal worlds: a high-profile murder trial and a probate fight that could influence how trusts are handled when a beneficiary is also the accused. Rob Reiner was 78 and Michele Singer Reiner was 70 at the time of their deaths. The outcome here could set precedent well beyond this family.
Do you think a beneficiary should lose access to their trust before a conviction, or is it fair to freeze the money now? Sound off below.
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Local Lawton
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