Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Oregon

Guardianship/Conservatorship

I am the guardian and conservator for both my parents. Is there a fee or percentage of the estate that I can take to adminster everything for them? I am also the Trustee of their Living trust.


Asked on 1/09/08, 7:23 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Andrew Svitek Svitek Law Group, LLC

Re: Guardianship/Conservatorship

No! Guardians/conservators who are actively managing a conservatorship / guardianship are compensated by the hour for actual services performed.

I suspect you have merely been nominated as in an estate planning document, but there is active court proceeding. If there is a need for either you will need to hire a lawyer to help you through the process.

That's different from being a trustee of a living trust. A valid living trust will avoid the need for a conservatorship (it's called incapacity planning). It's probably an inter vivos trust, so they're still managing everything, and you're just the successor trustee.

The trust document will state what if anything you get as compensation, but if you are to receive a portion of the trust proceeds then it is better to received it as an inheritance for tax purposes than as income if you take it as compensation for a trust. Moreover, I doubt that winding down the trust will take very much time if it was properly setup.

There's more to this than I can mention here, so consult with a lawyer to explain what the effect of your nomination is. You can also decline to serve as trustee if you wish.

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Answered on 1/12/08, 5:15 pm


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