What Is A Professional Fiduciary?

A Professional Fiduciary is a licensed, trained professional who assumes responsibility for a position of trust. The Professional Fiduciary assumes the role often filled by family members or close associates of an individual, when these relatives or advisors are unable or unwilling to serve or if they are deemed as not placing the individual's needs and best interests above their own.  A Professional Fiduciary assumes the critical responsibilities of caring for the daily needs of an individual and/or their assets, with the standard of placing the client's needs and best interest above their own.

Fiduciaries serve by court appointment as Guardians, Conservators and Personal Representatives of estates. They also serve by agreement as Trustees, Representative Payees or as Agents under Powers of Attorney.  Professional Fiduciaries are overseen by the State of California, are governed by the Probate Code, and in many cases, must report to the Probate Court on specific cases.  Members of the Professional Fiduciary Association of California (PFAC) must abide by the PFAC Code of Ethics. In addition, there are annual educational requirements.

As a Trustee, a Professional Fiduciary is bound to carry out the terms of an individual's trust and is usually named when the founding trustee is incapacitated or has died and there is no successor trustee able or willing to serve.

As Conservator, the Fiduciary is legally appointed to manage the Conservatee's estate (assets) and/or person (daily needs) when the individual is deemed to be incapacitated and unable to provide these functions for him/herself. The Conservatee has to have been determined by the Court to be physically or mentally incapacitated. While it is desirable in most situaions for a family member to be the Conservator, in today's world, with dispersed and busy families, sometimes it is the best option for an objective, experienced professional to assume the daily responsibilities.  A Conservator is appointed by the court and his/her responsibilities are dictated by the court. In addition, the Conservator must report, at least annually, to the court.

As Personal Representative, the Professional Fiduciary administers the estate of a person who has died. In this capacity, the Fiduciary is responsible for inventorying and safeguarding the decedent's assets, collecting income, verifiying and paying obligations, identifying and notifying heirs and beneficiaries, and ultimately, distributing assets.

As Representative Payee, the Professional Fiduciary is authorized to receive Social Security or retirement plan income and pay the expenses of an incapacitated individual.

As an Agent under Power of Attorney, a Professional Fiduciary has the responsibility to act as Attorney-in-fact to make decisions regarding health care, financial and/or personal matters, as designated by the client's written instructions.