Fiduciary Duty

As guardian of the estate, you have a fiduciary duty to the IP, meaning you are responsible to manage their finances and make decisions solely in their best interests. As you make decisions in your role of guardian of the estate, keep in mind:

• You are legally obligated to manage the IP's assets and income using good judgment and only for their benefit.
• You cannot hire service providers who have a relationship to you that may cause a conflict of interest or benefit you financially. For example, if you are hiring someone to provide lawn care, you cannot pay your relative or hire their business to provide the services for a fee.
• You may not invest the IP's money in a business owned or controlled by you.
• You may not loan or gift the IP's money to yourself or others without advance permission from the court.
• You must make investment and asset management decisions that are low-risk and beneficial to the IP.
• You may not delegate your decision-making authority to anyone else, but you may hire professionals including accountants, attorneys, and investment advisors to offer advice and services needed to manage the IP's estate. Fees for these professionals may be paid from the IP's income.
• You have a duty to make and defend claims on the IP's behalf.

Specific Duties

Meet with the IP

When you are appointed guardian, you must meet with the IP, discuss your role and responsibilities as their guardian, and what rights they have retained. You should also confirm whether they have any advance planning documents, such as a Health Care Directive, Do Not Resuscitate Order, POA, a Will, and anything else listed in the Inventory. If the IP has advance planning documents, you should keep a copy of the documents and provide copies of any documents relevant to medical or end-of-life decision-making to the guardian of the person, if applicable.

Keep a Copy of the Court Order

It is important to keep a copy of the court order, also known as the Final Decree, or Guardianship Certificate. You will need to show a copy of the order or certificate to banks and other service providers to get information and use your powers as guardian. You may want to get a few certified copies from the clerk of the orphans' court office, as some organizations and service providers ask for a copy for their records. For your convenience, you may want to keep a picture of the court order in your phone and keep a paper copy in your car, purse, or another convenient location.