Lawyers representing Rob Reiner’s son, Nick Reiner, argue that he should be allowed to access a trust established for him as an infant, saying a “substantial portion” of the account came from an inheritance left by his grandfather, comedy icon Carl Reiner.
Nick has spent nearly a year at Twin Towers Correctional Facility after being accused of killing his parents, filmmaker Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner. He has pleaded not guilty to two murder charges, along with special-circumstance allegations involving multiple victims and murder committed while lying in wait.
The legal dispute centers on a trust estimated to be worth about $1.6 million. Nick is seeking access to the money to help cover his defense costs, maintaining that the assets legally belong to him as he prepares for trial.
The trustee overseeing the account has cited California’s Slayer Statute as a reason for withholding the funds. The law is designed to prevent a person who unlawfully kills someone from profiting financially from that death.
However, court documents obtained by Our News Outlet state that Nick’s attorneys believe the statute does not apply here. They argue that much of the trust was funded by Carl Reiner’s estate rather than by Nick’s parents.
“The Slayer Statute prevents a killer from receiving a benefit created by the killing. It takes away what a person receives because someone died; it does not divest a person of his pre-existing property,” the attorneys wrote.
The filing further states that a “substantial portion” of Nick’s trust originated with his grandfather, who included him in his estate plan alongside his other grandchildren.
Nick Reiner’s attorneys say he should be able to access a trust created for him as a baby, claiming that a “substantial portion” of the money was inherited from his grandfather, Carl Reiner
Nick claims much of the trust was funded by his late grandfather, Carl Reiner, pictured with his son Rob Reiner in 2017
According to the documents, at least $325,017.49 was transferred into the trust’s account at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank on December 24, 2024. Nick’s lawyers said counsel for the successor trustee indicated that additional distributions from Carl Reiner’s estate may also have been deposited into accounts held by the trust.
The filing says it remains unclear exactly how much of the trust originated with Carl Reiner or why those funds were placed in the trust instead of being transferred directly to Nick. His attorneys said they understood that the successor trustee was continuing to investigate the issue.
“Either way, the Slayer Statute has no application to that money,” the lawyers argued. Carl Reiner died on June 29, 2020, and Nick has not been accused of causing his death.
The attorneys maintained that money inherited from Nick’s grandfather was not received from or through his parents. If those funds are Nick’s personal property, they argued, the money should be separated from the trust and released to him.
They added that even if the funds were correctly held within the trust, California’s Slayer Statute would not justify withholding them and that they should instead be distributed under paragraphs 4.4 and 4.5 of the trust agreement.
Nick’s legal team also claimed in the filings that he has been unable to use any of the trust money for even the most basic purchases while in custody.
“In the meantime, Nick still has not been able to access even $5 from his trust to buy basic subsistence items from the jail commissary,” his attorneys wrote.
The dispute adds another layer to an increasingly bitter family conflict over the fortune Rob and Michele Reiner set aside for their son when he was a baby.
Sources previously told Our News Outlet that Nick’s siblings, Jake and Romy Reiner, have jointly declined to help him use the inheritance as a financial resource in fighting allegations that he killed their parents.
Nick Reiner has spent nearly a year in a Los Angeles jail following allegations that he killed his filmmaker father, Rob Reiner, and his mother, Michele Singer Reiner
Nick’s grandfather was comedy legend Carl Reiner, pictured in 1957
‘It’s not an issue of love or not, it’s an issue of how much do you allow someone to take from you,’ a longtime Reiner family friend said.
‘Knowing that he’s using their inheritance for his defense is just too much. They won’t allow that if they can help it.’
Sources previously told Our News Outlet that Jake, 34, and Romy, 28, have felt the need to establish strict boundaries as they grieve their parents.
‘I wouldn’t say [they] abandoned him for good,’ one family friend said. ‘I’d say that they are setting boundaries that are appropriate for their healing, and Nick is not a part of their healing.’
Another source said the siblings were ‘not budging’ over the trust dispute.
Their older half-sister Tracy Reiner, 61, Rob’s adopted daughter from his marriage to Penny Marshall, was also said to support keeping Nick from accessing the inheritance.
Nick’s attorneys insist, however, that the dispute is fundamentally about his right to use money that already belongs to him while he is still presumed innocent.
‘What the Successor Trustee asks this Court to do is enter an order freezing a presumed-innocent man’s own untainted money until after the trial at which his liberty will be decided,’ they wrote.
Sources previously told Our News Outlet that Nick’s siblings Jake and Romy Reiner are united in refusing to help him turn his inheritance into a war chest to fight charges that he brutally murdered their parents (Jake and Romy pictured center, Nick far right)
In the filings, Reiner’s lawyers also claimed that their client cannot even use his fortune to buy basic items from the commissary at Twin Towers Correctional Facility; Nick with his father in 2016
They also claim his siblings have made ‘no claim’ over the money in the trust.
‘They were served with Nick’s Petition months ago and did not object, and they have never sought a determination under the Slayer Statute. To the contrary, in April 2026 they consented in writing to the disbursement of a substantial portion of Nick’s Trust to pay legal fees incurred by his criminal-defense lawyers,’ the filing says.
Nick pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder over the December 14, 2025 deaths of his father, acclaimed filmmaker Rob Reiner, 78, and his photographer-producer mother Michele, 70, at their Brentwood home.
Prosecutors allege the couple were stabbed to death and Nick was indicted in July with special circumstances including lying in wait, along with an allegation that he used a knife.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced last week that prosecutors would not seek the death penalty. Nick could still face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.
But while that criminal case advances, an increasingly acrimonious second battle is raging over the money Nick wants to spend defending himself.
The Nick Reiner Children’s Trust was created by Rob and Michele in 1993 and names Nick as its sole beneficiary.
His lawyers say the trust contains approximately $1.6 million and argue that at least $558,000 should have been handed to him when he turned 30 on September 14, 2023 – more than two years before his parents were killed.
‘Nick turned 30 on September 14, 2023,’ his attorneys wrote. ‘By the Successor Trustee’s own calculation, at least $558,000 became due and payable to him that day. His parents were alive. No one had accused him of anything.’
That timing is now at the heart of his legal argument.
Reiner has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder over the December 14, 2025 deaths of his father, acclaimed filmmaker Rob Reiner, 78, and his photographer-producer mother Michele, 70, at their Brentwood home
Reiner’s legal team has also launched an attack on the amount being spent fighting his attempts to access the money.
They claim attorneys representing the trustees have already racked up more than $250,000 in legal fees – paid from the very trust Reiner is trying to unlock.
‘Third, it is Nick who is paying for the fight to keep his money from him,’ his attorneys complained in their new filing.
They warned: ‘Every month this continues, there is less left – for Nick, and for anyone who might ever claim it.’
The filings also allege that former trustee Paul R Kanin agreed in April to put money into Reiner’s jail commissary account but never followed through.
Prosecutors allege the couple were stabbed to death and Reiner was indicted in July with special circumstances including lying in wait, along with an allegation that he used a knife; a sketch of Nick in court on January 7, 2026
According to Reiner’s lawyers, Kanin’s attorney requested instructions for making the deposits, which were provided on April 21.
‘No deposit was ever made,’ they claimed. ‘Kanin never withdrew the commitment; it was simply never honored.’
Kanin, who resigned as trustee in May after serving for approximately 15 weeks, has denied breaching his fiduciary duties and maintains that he acted prudently.
Successor trustee Jodi Pais Montgomery has also opposed releasing the money while the murder prosecution remains unresolved, arguing that the trust should be preserved until it is clear whether the Slayer Statute applies.
Reiner’s attorneys say the financial freeze has far more serious consequences than leaving him unable to buy commissary items.
High-powered attorney Alan Jackson initially represented Reiner following his arrest but withdrew from the criminal case in January, citing ‘circumstances beyond our control.’
Reiner is now represented by a public defender at taxpayer expense, but has said he wants to rehire Jackson if he gains access to his trust.
‘The harm here is severe and ongoing,’ his attorneys wrote.
‘Nick has been deprived of the use of his own money and has been unable to pay for criminal defense counsel and experts since January 2026, prejudicing his ability to defend against double homicide charges with special circumstances.’
Jackson has indicated he could return if the funding dispute is resolved.
‘He’s made a determination that he wants to be able to use his funds that are in his trust account to decide on his criminal counsel,’ Jackson previously said.
