Co-Fiduciaries as the Executors of an Estate, Trust, or Guardianship in Pennsylvania

In some instances, you may have difficulty selecting an executor of your estate or successor trustee for your trust or guardianship, or you may want to have a family member involved but still have the assurance of utilizing a bank or trust company. In these cases, it may be useful to you to appoint co-fiduciaries, but you should only do so after consulting with a Pennsylvania trust attorney.

Whether or not using co-fiduciaries is appropriate or helpful depends on the particulars of your situation, including how well the two co-fiduciaries will work together.

Advantages include:

• the built-in checks and balances of using 2 heads instead of 1;
• the absolute transparency between co-fiduciaries;
• distribution of tasks to mitigate the burden on one single person; and
• logistics, such as availability.

On the other hand, using co-fiduciaries to manage your estate can run aground if the 2 parties become deadlocked and end up in court, which will drag for months if not years. Co-fiduciary fees are often much higher as well, although that may not be a problem if you’re relying on 2 family members who are beneficiaries of the estate, in which case the executor fee is often waived.

How an Estate Attorney Can Help You Decide on Co-Fiduciaries

Using co-fiduciaries can be helpful in the right situations, and damaging in the wrong ones. Before you decide to appoint co-fiduciaries, speak with a dedicated Pennsylvania trust attorney who will evaluate your circumstances and educate you about all of your estate planning options. Call the offices of Unruh, Turner, Burke & Frees for more information – 1-610-933-8069.

References:

http://wills.about.com/od/choosingfiduciaries/a/cofiduciaries.htm

Share on Social Media

• 
• 
• 
• 
•