Some Advice About Selecting Fiduciaries For Your Estate Plan
APRIL 20, 2009 VOLUME 16, NUMBER 37 When it comes time to complete estate planning, our clients usually have clear ideas about who should receive their property, what health care decisions they would want made — even how they feel about cremation, burial, organ donation and most of the other issues that must be addressed. […]
Conservator’s Self-Dealing Set Aside Despite Court Approval
OCTOBER 2, 2000 VOLUME 8, NUMBER 14 If an individual becomes incapacitated someone must take responsibility for his or her business affairs. That may mean the appointment of a conservator (in some states, “guardian of the estate”) by the court. Sometimes the individual will have had the foresight to establish a trust, or at least […]
Mother’s Incapacity Does Not Force Trustee To Account
NOVEMBER 8, 1999 VOLUME 7, NUMBER 19 Elisabeth Frudenfeld lives in California. In 1987, she established a revocable living trust. Nine years later, the California courts appointed a professional fiduciary as conservator to handle her affairs. Ms. Frudenfeld’s trust was primarily designed to avoid the probate process, and so she retained the power to revoke […]