Can You Sue for Breach of Fiduciary Duty in South Carolina?
Taylor Ambrosius January 25, 2024What happens when the personal representative of a will acts in their own interests rather than the best interests of the deceased? Similarly, what if a corporate officer engages in self-dealing rather than acting in the best interests of the corporation? Both are examples of a breach of fiduciary duty. In South Carolina, there are …
Grounds for Contesting and Challenging Wills in South Carolina
Rosen Hagood March 2, 2023Most people assume that a last will and testament, or at least a document purporting to be one, is the final say in what happens to a person’s estate. But there are ways to challenge wills in South Carolina, provided that certain criteria are met. This article outlines the grounds for contesting and challenging wills …
How to Become the Personal Representative of Your Parents’ Estate
Daniel “Frank” Blanchard, III July 21, 2022Children often want to ensure that their parents’ estates will be properly administered after their deaths. Parents, in turn, naturally desire that their children should take over their personal affairs after they pass away. The personal representative is the individual responsible for taking care of a person’s estate, and there are several different ways to …
What to Do if Your Trustee is Making Improper Investments
Daniel “Frank” Blanchard, III March 25, 2022One power that trustees have is to make investments of trust assets. Although trustees are granted a certain degree of authority in their investment decisions, that authority is not absolute. It is governed by both the terms of the trust and state law. Investing is an area that often engenders mistrust between beneficiaries and trustees, …
How a Trustee Should Handle an Unhappy Beneficiary
Rosen Hagood February 9, 2022The trustee of a trust is responsible for managing trust assets in the sole interest of its beneficiaries. The trustee stands in a special relationship of fiduciary responsibility to the grantor of the trust and to the beneficiaries. Where the beneficiaries’ expectations are in line both with the trust’s terms and the law, there should …