Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Montana

Re: power of attorney

A power of attorney imposes upon the attorney-in-fact a fiduciary duty to act in the utmost good faith when dealing with the principal�s financial affairs. In other words, if the person you mentioned who hired himself/herself out to work on the estate, put all the property in his/her name, borrowed money on it and then bought more property in his/her name with the borrowed funds; that person might be violating his/her duties. If the attorney-in-fact has indeed breached his/her duties, that person can be held liable for any losses to the estate caused by his/her breach. If the person has converted estate funds and property, a court could require that person to return the funds and property to the estate. However, the process of undoing the damage caused by an unscrupulous individual with a power of attorney can be costly and difficult. Typically, the legal process required to correct this problem is called a conservatorship or guardianship. You should seek the assistance of an experienced trusts and estates attorney who can determine if such a process is neccessary. The longer one waits to correct such a problem, the larger the problem will become and the possibility of a successful resolution will diminish.

Regarding the second power of attorney: if it was signed and executed after the power of attorney discussed previously, it may have revoked the previous power of attorney. However, without actually seeing these documents, I cannot conclude which power of attorney is valid.

This entire matter requires further inquiry and, presumably, the services of a lawyer. Feel free to contact me if you wish to discuss this matter further.