Attorneys for Nick Reiner appeared in Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday to request that their client be granted access to a $585,000 trust fund distribution. Reiner, who has pleaded not guilty to the December 2023 murders of his parents, Rob and Michele Singer Reiner, seeks the funds to pay for his legal defense. Judge Ruben Garcia scheduled a final ruling on the matter for Oct. 23, noting that the court requires more time to review filed objections.
The dispute centers on two conflicting interpretations of the trust's terms and the application of California's "slayer statute." The state law generally prohibits individuals from inheriting assets from someone they are found to have intentionally killed. While Reiner is currently facing trial, the trustee, Jodi Pais Montgomery, argued in court papers filed last Tuesday that the funds should remain withheld.
Montgomery claimed that Reiner, now 32, previously consented to let a prior trustee indefinitely defer the distribution he was eligible to receive upon turning 30 in 2023. However, in court documents filed Friday, Reiner disputed this account, stating he never authorized his mother or a trustee to withhold the money and was never informed the funds were available. Reiner’s filing asserts that the trust allows the trustee to hold funds only until the beneficiary chooses to receive them.
Reiner was indicted by a grand jury on charges including murder with special circumstances, such as lying in wait and multiple murders. The indictment alleges he used a knife in the Dec. 14 killings at his parents' Brentwood home. The original case against him was filed Dec. 16, two days after the bodies of Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were discovered by authorities.
The case involves a specific application of California probate and criminal law. While the "slayer statute" is designed to prevent individuals from profiting from a crime, this petition focuses on whether the $585,000 became Reiner's legal property when he turned 30—months before the deaths occurred. A ruling in Reiner's favor would establish that trust distributions vested prior to an alleged crime are accessible to the accused, whereas a ruling for the trustee would keep those funds under the control of the estate until the criminal trial concludes.
The decision scheduled for Oct. 23 will set the financial framework for Reiner's defense as he faces allegations of high degrees of cruelty and viciousness. The indictment, which replaced earlier charges, carries significant legal weight due to the special circumstance allegations. Beyond this specific trust, each of the Reiners' three children has an independent trust, though the larger family estate assets remain separate from this specific legal dispute. The criminal trial will continue following the resolution of these financial petitions.