Peninsula Fiduciary Services
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a fiduciary?
A fiduciary is a person who legally accepts responsibility for another person’s well-being, either financially, physically, or both. Fiduciary literally means “one who assumes responsibility for a position of trust.” There are various ways a fiduciary can represent you, either as power of attorney, court appointed conservator, executor, or trustee.
For more information on the specifics of the fiduciary relationship, please visit the Professional Fiduciary Association of California’s website at http://www.pfac-pro.org.
Why engage a professional fiduciary rather than relying on a family member?
In many cases, it makes sense to trust the expertise of a neutral party rather than relying on a family member or friend to handle your affairs in time of illness or at end of life. When you are at one of life’s crossroads, you want someone who will look out for your interests and honor your wishes without the emotional baggage that family members inevitably bring to these kinds of circumstance. Making end of life decisions can be difficult, and executing an estate is often full of challenges and complications. It’s the rare family member or friend who can manage these types of demanding and time-consuming projects through to successful completion.
How do you go about selecting the best professional fiduciary for you?
There are several factors that should be considered when selecting a professional fiduciary. First, think about your requirements, your values, and your desired outcomes. This will help you crystallize your thinking and also develop a set of questions that you can use as you interview possible candidates to find the fiduciary who is the best for you.
- What licenses do they have?
- What is there experience?
- How do they handle on call coverage and emergencies?
- Do they have insurance?
- Do they have privacy protection measures built into their business model?
- What are past clients saying about their experience?
- What professional associations do they belong to?
- And, how do they bill for their services?
Some of the qualities you will be looking for are: strong credentials, good listener, personalized service, commitment and dedication, care and empathy, collaboration, broad experience, solid track record, glowing references.
What makes Peninsula Fiduciary Services special?
At Peninsula Fiduciary Services, we take great pride in being a small, agile, and customer-centric firm. Everything we do revolves around our clients’ preferences and directions. We are fully committed to serving our clients’ circumstance and are there without fail whenever they need us. Because of our extensive experience in this highly specialized field, we can handle just about any kind of challenge, and we are very proud of our excellent track record, particularly what our clients say about us “in their own words.” We also know how to keep things organized and on track in those most challenging and dynamic of situations. What gets us up and off to work in the morning is the knowledge that we can make a difference in people’s lives every single day.
How do clients pay for your services?
Fees are consistent with other practitioners offering advanced skills in trust, conservatorship, and probate administration services. Please contact us directly for more information about our fee schedule.
What other professionals might be involved?
In many cases, there is a team of professionals involved in managing the financial, medical, and day-to-day needs of a client based on changing circumstances. These can include a family attorney, trust lawyer, healthcare provider, CPA, and financial advisor, to name a few. Peninsula Fiduciary Services has deep community ties and a wealth of professional affiliations that can be drawn upon depending on the needs of its clients. We also frequently form a “virtual teams” with other professionals, working in concert to support a client’s needs and wishes.
How do I learn more about Peninsula Fiduciary Services?
If you are interested in learning more about what Peninsula Fiduciary Services can do for you, please visit our "contact" link and send us an email or call our offices directly.