Q: 18 year-old named beneficiary of father's life insurance without right to withdraw until age 35.Trustee has

A: It depends. The person setting up the trust selects the trustees and beneficiaries. Depends if undue influence. See Undue Influence to challenge a Will or Power of Attorney

A grievance based upon undue influence may be sustained by showing that the beneficiary had a confidential relationship with the party who established the account. Accordingly, if the challenger can prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the survivor had a confidential relationship with the donor who established the account, there is a presumption of undue influence, which the surviving donee must rebut by clear and convincing evidence.

[Estate of Ostlund v. Ostlund, 391 N.J. Super. 390, 401 (App. Div. 2007).]

Although perhaps difficult to define, the concept "encompasses all relationships 'whether legal, natural or conventional in their origin, in which confidence is naturally inspired, or, in fact, reasonably exists.’” Pascale v. Pascale, 113 N.J. 20, 34 (1988) (internal citation omitted). "And while family ties alone may not qualify, parent-child relationships have been found to be among the most typical of confidential relationships." DeFrank, supra, slip op. at 13 (citing Ostlund, supra, 391N.J. Super. at 401).

In the context of inter vivos gifts, "a presumption of undue influence arises when the contestant proves that the donee dominated the will of the donor or when a confidential relationship exists between the donor and done." Pascale, supra, 113 N.J. at 30 (internal citations omitted). "Where parties enjoy a relationship in which confidence is naturally inspired or reasonably exists, the person who has gained an advantage due to that confidence has the burden of proving that no undue influence was used to gain that advantage," In re Estate of Penna,322 N.J. Super. 417, 423 (App. Div. 1999), and "the donee has the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence not only that 'no deception was practiced therein, no undue influence used, and that all was fair, open and voluntary, but that it was well understood.'" In re Estate of Mosery, 349 N.J. Super. 515, 522-23 (App. Div. 2002) (citing In re Dodge, 50 N.J. 192, 227 (1967)).

The person receiving gifts and greater benefit had a burden to show no deception was practiced and that all of the transactions were fair, open and voluntary, and that they were well understood.