Nick Reiner Seeks Access to Trust Funds, Citing Grandfather's Inheritance

Nick Reiner, a 32-year-old charged with the murders of his parents, has asked a California court to allow him to withdraw money from a family trust. In court filings obtained by TheWrap, his lawyers contend that a substantial share of the trust originated from his grandfather, Carl Reiner, who died of natural causes in 2020, and therefore is not subject to the state’s Slayer Statute, which bars a killer from inheriting from a victim.

The filing states, “Nick’s grandfather died on June 29, 2020. Nick is not accused of causing his death. Money that was left to Nick by his grandfather is not money received by Nick from or through his parents. To the extent the funds Nick received from his grandfather are Nick’s personal assets, they remain Nick’s and should be segregated and released from this Trust.”

Reiner’s team also notes that a portion of the trust was scheduled to be paid to him on his 30th birthday, September 14, 2023, before his parents died, amounting to at least $558,000 according to the successor trustee’s calculations. They argue that the Slayer Statute “takes away what a person receives as a result of someone’s death” and should not apply to these pre-death distributions.

The attorneys further assert that Reiner has not been convicted and that freezing the funds would impede his ability to retain legal representation. The case follows Reiner’s indictment on two counts of first-degree murder with a special circumstance of lying in wait. Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman has indicated that the death penalty will not be sought, citing the views of Reiner’s siblings and a review of mitigating and aggravating factors. If convicted, Reiner faces life imprisonment without parole, though a trial date has not yet been set.