Sample Articles

President's Message
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Ethics: Avoid a Complaint
By Russ Marshall, Past President, Ethics Committee Chair

The PFAC Ethics Committee takes its responsibility for processing complaints very seriously. As Past President, I assumed the role of the Chair of the PFAC Ethics Committee. I had no substantive knowledge of any ethics complaints until I received the materials passed on to me by Barbara de Vries, the previous Chair.

After reviewing the materials, I was reminded that the association's policy assures that the PFAC Ethics Committee members will hold any complaint in highest confidentiality. The PFAC Board knows nothing about any complaint until the committee completes its investigation and makes a recommendation. This is, of course, to protect the fiduciary who is the subject of an unsubstantiated complaint.
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Public Relations
Presenting yourself to the public in a positive way.

When approached to make any kind of a public statement, there are two main objectives to keep in mind:

1) to obtain positive coverage of the indus try or subject

2) to educate the public about the industry or subject

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Legislative Update
By Shirley Trissler, President Elect

On September 30, Governor Gray Davis signed SB 294 into law. It requires trustees to register with the Statewide Registry on or before January 1, 2005. Those excluded from registration are any public conservator or public guardian, anyone who is related by blood, marriage, or adoption to the conservatee, ward, trustor or vested beneficiary or a trustee who administers less than six trusts at the same time, or a Trust Company.

It prohibits the inclusion of anonymous complaints against a conservator, guardian or trustee, and specifies that the information reported will be confidential. Prior to this bill, trustees had the option of registering. It also differentiates between “resignation” and “removal.”

A special thank-you to Sandy Carey for all the hard work she did getting this bill passed. Also to Richard Lambie and Russ Marshall.
GET THE FULL STORY IN THE WINTER PFAC NEWS

Real Estate
By Shirley Bell
When and Why a Fiduciary may Choose to Take a Risk When Selling Properties:

I am working on a real estate transaction right now that is typical of lower range priced properties.  Buyers in the range most often do not have the 10% down payment required in the Probate process.  Holding out for a Buyer with a cash reserve often means taking a lower offer.  A Fiduciary has a responsibility to get the very most for the client.  Is this instance, a Fiduciary cannot do so without taking a risk.  In today’s market, in San Diego, there is a way to minimize this risk. Get the full article

SPEAKERS BUREAU
By Jane Lorenz

Have you ever heard of Enlightened Self Interest?  That’s when you do good things because it has a good effect on you too!  For example, your dog let’s you know that he needs to go outside.  You stop what you’re doing and take him out.  You’ve done a good thing by being thoughtful of your dog’s comfort and you don’t have to clean up a mess from your floor! Get the full article

Heirs The Problem: No Heirs Means No Administration  The Solution: Obtain the Nomination
By John Sellmann Hilbert, Esq.

The scenario:  As conservator at the time of death of the conservatee, you know of no heirs, but you wish to secure appointment as administrator of the probate.  What do you and your counsel do?

One option is to engage a company or individual specializing in finding missing heirs.  At the time you retain their services, request that they also attempt to obtain your nomination to serve as administrator for the heir(s).

My experience has been that, more often than not, heirs willingly, and, in fact, gladly execute the nomination since they are comfortable knowing that the conservator has prior experience managing the affairs of the decedent.  Such prior experience portends an efficient and, overridingly, a speedy probate administration, for the heirs' main concern is distribution of the estate as quickly as possible. Get the full article

Fiduciaries and the Web
By Lisa Berg

A website that I though would be useful to fiduciaries is www.healthfinder.gov which is designed to provide resources for self-help and support groups.

Other websites for drug information, that I found in the Geriatric Care Manager Journal, is helpful when trying to get the latest information when a new prescribed drugs is given to our clients. Get the full article

The Camera is your Friend
By Rick Williams

This recently happened to me in San Diego.  The conservatee died and since his wish was to be cremated, he was sent to the crematorium.  But, since the facility had violated some regulations, there was a "seizure" and before my client could be cremated, he was transferred to Los Angeles as part of this regulatory "seizure".  It was a big mess but the staff at the crematorium assured me everything would be straightened out.  In fact, they would soon go get my client, but for identification purposes, they requested a picture from me (even though he had an ankle name tag), just so they could be sure. Get the full article
POSTED 04/07/2001

THREE WAYS TO DIVERSIFY YOUR PORTFOLIO
CONTRIBUTED BY: Colby J. Craig, Financial Advisor Morgan Stanley

Diversification is an investment strategy that helps you avoid putting all your eggs in one basket.  When you allocate your investment dollars among many investments, you potentially reduce the risk of a single investment and help to optimize your overall return given your risk tolerance. There are a number of ways you can diversify when deciding which stocks are best suited for you.  Consider the following possibilities. Get the full article