The Colorado Court of Appeals recently affirmed the probate court’s holding that the former conservator and brother of a woman with mental illness had breached his fiduciary duty and engaged in theft when he converted his sister’s assets to benefit himself and his...
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Fiduciaries
Fiduciary wrongdoing: What are the legal remedies?
Wrongdoing by trustees and personal representatives can take many forms. It could be outright theft from an estate or a long-term scheme to embezzle funds from a trust. The wrongdoing might be hard to uncover if it involves decisions that routinely favor one...
Siblings and inheritance: 3 points about preventing disputes
With every day that passes, adult siblings who grew up together get farther away from their common upbringing. Over time, many relationships become frayed - and often break down altogether after a parent's death gives rise to an inheritance dispute.What can families...
Part II: Breach of fiduciary duty in a conservatorship
This is a continuation from our last post on whether a change of beneficiary designation was actually a mistake. In this post, we summarize the facts and discuss the duty of loyalty required in a fiduciary conservator relationship.The recent Colorado Court of Appeals...
What would Prince have wanted? And who gets to decide?
In his Super Bowl halftime performance, Justin Timberlake paid tribute to Minnesota native Prince. And a producer who handled the visuals said that Timberlake decided that the “only person who could do Prince justice [was] Prince.” So the performance...
Considerations in choosing a Colorado fiduciary
In estate planning, probate, guardianship and conservatorship, Colorado courts and individuals appoint people to positions of responsibility, care taking and decision-making. Examples of fiduciaries are personal representatives, trustees, guardians, conservators,...
Questions to answer before finalizing a power of attorney
Financial powers of attorney allow another person (an agent) to transact business on your behalf, including withdrawing money from your banking account or selling property. While simple in concept, it can be easy to make mistakes when using standardized forms.A...
FAQ about fiduciary duties in Colorado
Few people fully understand fiduciary duties in the context of trusts, estates, guardianships, conservatorships and similar matters. This is because they generally do not have to handle these duties on a daily basis.As we discussed in our December blog post, a...
Duties and responsibilities of a trustee
Whether you are considering who to appoint as a trustee or you have recently accepted an appointment, you need to know what the role entails. The basics are to manage, preserve and administer assets on behalf of another person. In some cases, it may make sense to...
Disagreements between fiduciaries and family members
There are many different situations in which a Coloradan could end up having fiduciary duties in relation to a loved one or a loved one’s estate. This is because there are several different fiduciary roles individuals in the state are sometimes named for by a...