Q. My marriage ended due to my ex’s gambling issues. My ex-mother-in-law died recently, leaving almost $1M to our kids for private school and college. She created three separate accounts of $300,000 for each child in their names. They are minors so my ex now thinks once their education costs are paid for, the money is hers and is talking about pulling them out of private school, which her mom always funded, to preserve the money.

I am so worried she will get her hands on the money somehow and gamble it away. Is there anything I can do to be proactive here? Thankfully the money manager is my former mother-in-law’s best friend, so she is aware of my ex-wife’s issues and has taken the position she will not release any money to either of us without a court order.

A. You can file a complaint for modification asking for sole legal custody of your children as it relates to overseeing their assets and using the funds to pay for private school and college.  The change in circumstance is the passing of their grandmother who left accounts in their names and, being minors, they cannot access the accounts. You can then file a motion for temporary orders asking for temporary sole legal custody for this narrow purpose so you can access the money promptly to pay any tuition which may be due for this spring. Given your ex’s history, I suspect a judge would have no problem granting this request on a temporary basis and, perhaps, when your ex sees you are doing the right thing for your children, she will agree to the ultimate relief. If not, a trial will happen down the road at which time you can call the money manager as a witness to speak to her understanding of the structure of the accounts and the purpose and you can testify to your ex’s gambling issues.

Another option is for you to seek to be appointed as the conservator for each of your minor children. Your ex would have the right to object, which would land you in front of a judge for temporary appointment followed by a potential trial down the road to make your appointment permanent.

Because the account is in your children’s names, they will be in control at 18 so you should also restructure the accounts to protect them from themselves through college age.

Email questions to whickey@brickjones.com