Under Illinois law, an individual holding a power of attorney is a fiduciary as a matter of law. The person designated as a power of attorney agent owes a fiduciary duty to the principal—the person making the designation.
You’ve considered how you want your estate to be distributed after you die. Hopefully, you’ve even written a will to make sure your wishes will be followed. So, your estate is planned…right?
Years ago he signed a power of attorney document naming me as his agent, so I could help him with these types of things. Not ever having done this before, what do I need to know about fiduciary duty?
I plan to leave most of my estate to my niece, but I do not want her estranged husband to be able to get his hands on any of the money. They are not getting divorced ‘because of the child.’ What is the most economical way to do this? They live in Missouri and may be moving to South Carolina. I am a New Jersey resident.
You make things easier for the children, by planning for the possibility of a nursing home stay because you take the burden off the children to make crisis decisions for your long-term care costs.
If asked to be a trustee, anyone, unless previously experienced in this field would not know what the responsibilities are. How much work is involved? What is the time frame? Do I need to prepare tax returns and handle accounts? Can I get help? When do my responsibilities end?
Dealing with the death of a parent is challenging but selling their home can be fraught with land mines, particularly if they die without a will.
For some people with complicated personal and financial lives, today’s complexities may not be fully addressed with a do-it-yourself service for wills and trusts.