Capital One in trial over 'mismanaged' trust

Capital One will attempt to convince a Jefferson County jury that it did not breach its fiduciary duty to plaintiff Doris Garrod Teague, who seeks to wrestle away control of a family trust from the bank.

Jury selection in the trial of Teague vs. Capital One N.A. began Monday, Aug. 15 in Judge Donald Floyd's 172nd District Court.

Teague sued Capitol One in October 2008, claiming the bank "mismanaged" the Garrod Family Trust and caused the funds to be misclassified and subject to review by the Internal Revenue Service.

Court records show that in 1994 Teague and her then husband, Don Garrod, created the Garrod Family Trust, funding it with $95,000 in investments securities.

In April 2006, Capitol One became the successor of the trust and was directed to form two separate trusts from the first, Trust M (the marital deduction trust) and Trust B.

However, Trust M was not created in accord with the scheduled tax return, resulting in misclassification of assets, the lawsuit states.

"The plaintiff has been subjected to numerous vexatious instances of the Trustee's behavior," the suit states. "In 2008, the plaintiff requested the removal of the Trustee, an act which the defendant Trustee has opposed."

Teague is seeking an award of actual and consequential damages, in addition to control of the trust.

Beaumont attorney Charles Reed represents her.

Capital One is represented by Beaumont attorney William Yoes.

Case No. E182-514