Ethics for Trustees 2.0
A Guide for All Who Serve as Trustee
by
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Please note that in addition to maintaining the Trust appropriately, the Trustor has a responsibility to “think through” the management of the Trust, once the Trustor is no longer able to manage alone, in light of incapacity, resignation and death. Consider the conditions required for you to allow your successor trustee to begin working for you. We call the overarching process of trust management, “trust administration”. Consider how your successor trustee will administer your trust, when the time comes. Will you feel comfortable enough to invoke your trust, if you become ill or weary? Will you actually let your Fiduciary go to work while you are alive? We hear from our colleagues that this is often a challenging discussion for the estate planning attorney to have with the client (the Trustor) who has already made so many decisions during the estate planning process. The attorney can suggest alternatives, but this choice is ultimately that of the Trustor. Clearly, it is not just the documents as drafted, but as much the individual charged with the responsibility, that makes the difference in how a trust is administered. We feel this falls under Ethics for Trustees, as typically, the Trustor is not just the first Trustee of the Trust, but also the first beneficiary.
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About the Book
Your loved one, or a professional may be your best option as your Successor (Trustee/Executor), but don't select anyone without reading this book first! Too many families are no longer on speaking terms because the chosen person did a poor job, or just did not fulfill the required fiduciary duties.
"This little book saved our family from World War III, thank you!!" A. B., 86 years old.
Ethics for Trustees 2.0 is for everyone who is getting their estate plan written, as every Trustor needs to select a Successor Trustee. This book is for everyone who serves as a Trustee of a Trust; experienced or inexperienced; Attorneys, Fiduciaries, CPA's, Family Members and Friends, etc., this book can help you better understand what is required to do the job well.
Quotes and concepts have been drawn from personal experience based on serving as private professional trustees in California. This book is designed to stimulate discussion in our estate planning community, to emphasize the value of continuing education, and to encourage those who serve as a Fiduciary to do their best.
About the Author
Marguerite Lorenz, CTFA, CLPF is a Managing Partner with Lorenz Private Trustees (www.MyTrustee.net) and has been serving as a professional trustee, agent and executor since 2003. Ms. Lorenz was appointed by Governor Brown to serve as a member of the Professional Fiduciary Bureau Advisory Committee, and she was Chairman for her entire term. She continues to educate students through both video and live presentations, while serving as Vice Chair for the Independent Trustee Alliance (TrusteeAlliance.com) She serves as the President of the Estate Planning Group Network – EstatePlanningGroups.com whose mission is to strengthen the estate planning community to improve client outcomes everywhere. Ms. Lorenz is a thought leader on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/californiatrustee/) and other social media sites, @SanDiegoTrustee. Please take a moment to share your thoughts with us about this book: LFS@MyTrustee.net - Your shares and likes make a big difference in helping people get their estate planning done because everyone needs some encouragement to get through the emotions these topics bring to the surface.