Representing Fiduciaries: Legal Ethics for Counsel and Pitfalls to Avoid
Understanding Fiduciary Risks, Fee Agreements and Disclosures, Confidentiality Issues, and More

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Ethics
- event Date
Wednesday, March 19, 2025
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
-
An excellent opportunity to earn Ethics CLE credits. Note: BARBRI cannot guarantee that this course will be approved for ethics credits in all states. To confirm, please contact our CLE department at pdservice@barbri.com.
This CLE webinar will provide attorneys an in-depth analysis of ethical risks of representing fiduciaries and offer strategies to overcome challenges relating to such representation. The panel will discuss critical fiduciary risks attorneys must understand, fee agreements and disclosures, navigating confidentiality issues, conflicts of interest, and other key items to minimize potential liability.
Faculty

Ms. Glaspy is the Managing Partner in the Orange County office. Having previously served as a Deputy District Attorney, she brings extensive trial experience and has worked closely with clients through complex and emotionally-charged disputes. Ms. Glaspy brings that experience to RMO where she focuses her practice on probate disputes, including will and trust contests, breach of fiduciary duty claims, financial elder abuse protection, and contested conservatorships, representing beneficiaries, as well as individual, professional and corporate fiduciaries (administrators, executors, trustees and conservators).

Mr. Bourque serves as Managing Attorney of RMO LLP’s Dallas and Houston offices. He focuses his practice on representing heirs, beneficiaries, fiduciaries, creditors, and other interested parties in contested probate, trust, guardianship, and financial elder abuse cases. Mr. Bourque primarily handles probate litigation matters including will contests, fiduciary litigation to recover misfunded, misapplied or misappropriated estate and trust funds, community property claims, executor and trustee removal proceedings, compelled distribution of estate and trust assets, trust accounting lawsuits, competing applications for guardianship, and establishment of common-law marriage and adoption-by-estoppel. He also has significant experience handling commercial litigation incidental to probate matters.
Description
Attorneys providing services to fiduciaries may result in a variety of ethical issues. Counsel must adhere to various state rules, understand best practices for fees, maintain guidelines for handling conflicts of interest, and address other challenges that will arise.
The importance of identifying ethical issues is essential when representing fiduciaries, such as trustees, executors, advisers, and guardians. Attorneys have to explore the complexities of balancing duties to the fiduciary as the client while also adhering to their responsibilities to the practice of law, such as (1) the duty of loyalty and confidentiality; (2) conflicts of interest between fiduciaries and beneficiaries; (3) handling disputes involving fiduciaries while maintaining compliance with the Rules of Professional Conduct; and (4) advising fiduciaries on their legal and ethical responsibilities.
Listen as our panel discusses obligations and risks for fiduciaries, identifying who is being represented, ethical risks concerning third-party payors, and other key items to minimize potential liability.
Outline
- Types of fiduciary relationships and fiduciary obligations
- Risks of fiduciary representation
- Fee agreements, disclosures, and third-party payments
- Client communications and confidentiality issues
- Best practices for counsel
Benefits
The panel will discuss these and other key issues:
- Understanding the ethical risks associated with representing fiduciaries
- Determining who is the client and establishing an attorney-client relationship
- Key provisions for fee agreements and disclosures
- Third-party payments
- Handling confidentiality issues and conflicts of interest
- Best practices for counsel providing services to fiduciaries
Related Courses

Representing Fiduciaries: Legal Ethics for Counsel and Pitfalls to Avoid
Available On-Demand

Ethically Representing Clients With Adverse Interests: Assessing What Needs To Be Disclosed, How and When Legal Adverseness Requires Action
Tuesday, March 4, 2025
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
Recommended Resources
Navigating Modern Legal Challenges: A Comprehensive Guide
- Business & Professional Skills
- Career Advancement
Beyond Law School: Tackling the Realities of Modern Legal Practice
- Learning & Development
- Business & Professional Skills
- Career Advancement