Archive for category: Fiduciary Litigation

Avoiding Fiduciary Conflicts of Interest

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by Carol Warnick

It is very difficult for a trustee to have conflicts of interest without breaching the duty of loyalty.  We typically think of trustee conflicts as they relate to self-dealing by the trustee, which is almost always a problem and for which the beneficiaries can obtain redress.  But I have seen more conflicts lately in my practice where a trustee is trustee of different trusts that have conflicting interests, or the trustee is serving as trustee of a trust and also as personal representative of an estate whose interests are in direct conflict with each other.

When faced with a conflict situation, a trustee needs to take action before he or she breaches the duty of loyalty, which is a bedrock duty owed by all fiduciaries.  Restatement of Trusts § 78 (1) states that a “trustee has a duty to administer the trust solely in the interest of the beneficiaries . . . .”  That is not possible when the two trusts (or the trust and the estate) have conflicting interests and what the fiduciary does as trustee of one trust would be detrimental to the other.  One example would be engaging in a specific transaction that is beneficial to the beneficiaries of one trust but harmful to the beneficiaries of the other trust or of the estate.  Read more

No Contest Clauses – Not Just for Wills

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by Matthew Skotak

Fiduciary litigation continues to grow and often times outpaces the development of case law regarding the myriad of issues that arise in estate and trust disputes.  Historically fiduciary litigation involved disputing family members or changes in family circumstances.  However, another frequent source of litigation is the estate planning documents themselves.  For this reason, estate planners often include a no contest clause, or in terrorem clause, in a will or trust as a means of deterring feuding beneficiaries from challenging the validity of the instrument; yet, enforcement of these no contest clauses carries its own burden.

A no contest clause is more frequently contained in a will, although it can also be prudent to include these provisions in trusts – especially when the underlying concern is to discourage litigation over the decedent’s estate plan by disinheriting a person who unsuccessfully contests the will and/or trust.  The enforceability of these provisions varies from state to state; however, Colorado has determined that a no contest clause is valid when the contesting party lacks probable cause to bring their challenge.  See Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 15-11-517, 15-12-905.  Read more

Prudently Investing: What Trustees Need to Know

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by Matthew Skotak

Acting in the best interests of the trust and the trust beneficiaries, a trustee has the duty to protect and preserve trust assets and, generally, to make the assets productive. In making investment decisions and managing trust assets, the trustee must further abide by the “prudent investor rule,” which requires a trustee to exercise reasonable care, skill and caution. See Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 15-1.1-101, et. seq. (the “Uniform Prudent Investor Act”) and §§ 15-1-1101, et. seq. (the “Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act”).

Pursuant to the prudent investor rule, a trustee should consider broad investment factors, such as: current economic conditions, effects of inflation or deflation, tax consequences, the nature of closely-held business interests, alternative investments, expected returns on income and capital, other resources of the trust or trust beneficiaries, the need for liquidity versus preservation of capital, the production of income, the special value or relationship of a particular asset to the trust or the beneficiaries, diversification of investments, and more. See, Restatement (Second) of Trusts § 227. Additionally, while it is important to note that Colorado courts have not officially adopted the Restatement (Third) of Trusts, one could refer to § 90, which lists five helpful “principles” of the prudent investor rule. Generally, any single investment will not violate the prudent investor rule and the trustee should manage the trust portfolio as a whole taking into account these considerations. Read more

Is the Statute of Limitations Really Running?

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by Matthew Skotak

The concept of a statute of limitations is easy to understand: a lawsuit has to be commenced within so many years after the complained of act occurred or pursuit of the lawsuit may be forever barred.  Where it gets tricky are the exceptions to this rule.  For example, if the wrongdoer concealed the wrongful act or the wrongful act occurred in some way that made it highly unlikely that the aggrieved person would know about it, then the statute of limitations should not start running until the injured person knows or through reasonable diligence should have known about the wrongful act.  This “tolling” of the statute of limitations is typically referred to as the discovery rule: the statute of limitations doesn’t start running until a plaintiff knew or reasonably should have known of the alleged wrongful act.

Not all states apply the discovery rule, and not all states apply it to every cause of action. However, many jurisdictions apply the discovery rule to fiduciary related actions.  As an example, the equitable discovery rule was applied in Utah to a lawsuit regarding a trust. Read more

When Beneficiaries are Not Heirs

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by Jody H. Hall, Paralegal

The terms Beneficiary and Heir both refer to someone who receives an inheritance after someone passes away.  However, while the terms are often used interchangeably, they do not always refer to the same individual or set of individuals.  Heirs can be beneficiaries but beneficiaries are not always heirs.

In our practice, we often see issues arising when these 2 sets are not identical or are different than the expectations of the parties. Read more

Decanting to Eliminate a Beneficiary – New York Says Yes

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by Kelly Dickson Cooper

Settlors often ask whether they can change the beneficiaries of an irrevocable trust because life circumstances or relationships have changed. Often, the answer is no.  However, in a recent case in New York, the trustee was able to accomplish the settlor’s desire to disinherit one of his children through a decanting. Read more

Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover (or Fifty Ways to Plan, Administer and Litigate Estates)

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by Carol Warnick

As the old song by Paul Simon contemplates, there are fifty ways to leave your lover, and there are also fifty ways to plan, administer and litigate estates and trusts.  I have recently become aware of various situations in which attorneys assume that because things are done a certain way in the state in which they practice, they are done the same way in other states.

I am licensed in three states, Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, and deal regularly with the significant differences between them.  For example, Colorado tends to use “by representation” in dealing with passing assets down the generations, but Utah and Wyoming both use “per stirpes.”  Read more

Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty: Which Interest is Best?

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by Matthew Skotak

The term “fiduciary” can be considered a vague term that encompasses many different people and several different relationships.  Under Colorado law, a fiduciary includes, without limitation, a trustee of any trust, a personal representative, guardian, conservator, receiver, partner, agent, or “any other person acting in a fiduciary capacity for any person, trust, or estate.” Colo. Rev. Stat. § 15-1-103(2).  It is within this context that we examine a fiduciary’s duty of loyalty and how best to uphold that duty.

In the context of a trust, and as stated in the Restatement (Second) of Trusts § 2, a fiduciary relationship with respect to property arises out of the manifestation of an intention to create the fiduciary relationship and subjects the trustee “to equitable duties to deal with the property for the benefit of another person.”  From this relationship stems several inherent and implied fiduciary duties.  Generally, the fiduciary duties applicable to a trustee are: the duty of loyalty, the duty to exercise care and skill in managing the trust assets and administering the trust, and the duty to remain impartial to all beneficiaries.   Read more

New Uniform Directed Trust Act

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by Kelly Dickson Cooper

More and more, I review trust agreements that appoint a trustee, but then appoint other individuals or institutions to perform certain tasks that are normally in the domain of the trustee.  They are sometimes referred to as trust protectors, trust advisors, trust directors, special powerholders, investment trustees, or distribution trustees.  I most often see these appointments in the areas of investments or distributions.

The trust language that attempts to divide the responsibilities of a trustee among a group is often unclear and give rise to difficult questions as to the scope of each individuals’ responsibilities.  There is also the question of whether the trustee is responsible for the actions of the other appointees and if the appointees are fiduciaries.  These problems with interpretation are often exacerbated because the laws are not clear about the division of these responsibilities and the liability of each actor.  Read more

IRS Rules on Tax Impacts of Trust Modification

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by Kelly Dickson Cooper

In my practice, I regularly answer questions regarding the permissibility and advisability of modifying irrevocable trusts.  With the enactment of a decanting statute in Colorado in 2016, these types of requests will only increase.  One of the major hurdles in modifying irrevocable trusts (and a trap for the unwary) is the potential tax consequences of a modification.  We often have to consider estate tax inclusion issues, the possibility of the imposition of gift taxes due to the modification, and the potential loss of generation-skipping transfer tax exemption for a trust. Read more