Trusts and Estates: Designating Fiduciaries

A component of any estate plan is designating various fiduciaries to act in the event of your death or incapacity. This will typically include designating one or more of the following:

• Trustee: The trustee is responsible for preserving, protecting and investing the trust property and distributing trust assets as directed in the trust instrument.
  
• Personal Representative (Executor): The personal representative gathers and administers the property of the estate and distributes the assets of the estate in accordance with the provisions of the decedent's will.
  
• Guardian: The guardian generally has legal authority to make personal decisions for a minor or other person under legal disability, including responsibility for his or her physical, medical and educational needs.
  
• Health Care Agent: The health care agent is authorized to make health care decisions on someone's behalf if he or she is unable to make or communicate decisions personally. Oftentimes, a person will provide specific directions to his or her agent in this document with respect to care, treatment and disposition of remains at death.
  
• Attorney-in-Fact: The attorney-in-fact is authorized to act on your behalf (as if you were present and acting on your own) with respect to certain financial matters.

Various factors must be considered in designating appropriate fiduciaries in any given situation. We recommend that you contact an attorney in our wealth management practice if you would like to discuss these factors in further detail.