Las Cruces Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawyer

A “breach of fiduciary duty” means that someone in a position of trust took advantage of their privileges, or otherwise acted inappropriately, causing harm to a person they were obligated to serve faithfully. Their conduct could have been intentional, grossly negligent, or the result of failing to recognize a conflict of interest. In any case, those affected can ask a court to intervene. If their petition is successful, it could result in the reversal of certain actions, the repayment of damages, and other forms of appropriate relief.

While there are many different types of fiduciary roles, the ones that apply most often to estate and probate law are: personal representatives of an estate (i.e., the executor), a trustee, a guardian, a conservator, a custodian, and an agent (AKA an “attorney in fact”) with power of attorney. All of these roles carry significant responsibility, and failing to act in line with expectations can be grounds for legal action.

If you suspect that someone has broken your trust or acted incompetently in a way that violated their duties to you — or someone close to you — you can reach out to a Las Cruces breach of fiduciary duty lawyer. We can help you investigate your situation and determine the best path forward. Call New Mexico Financial & Estate Planning Attorneys today at (505) 503-1637 or contact us online to schedule a no-obligation, confidential consultation and case review.

Reach out to a Las Cruces Attorney When Breach of Fiduciary Duty Is Suspected

A fiduciary can be a professional, like a lawyer or accountant. But, in the context of estate planning and probate law, they can often be someone without professional experience. They are always someone you assumed you could trust.

Any time a suspicious pattern of behavior — or obvious wrongdoing — occurs, time is one of your most precious resources. Contact a Las Cruces breach of fiduciary attorney immediately. They can listen to your concerns, start documenting the actions taken, and begin building a case to protect you and the others you care about.

Advantages of responding quickly to possible breaches in fiduciary duty include:

• Monitoring further activities for continued suspicious, incompetent, or inappropriate actions
• Gathering and preserving evidence
• Notifying other parties to take protective steps
• Demonstrating due diligence, rather than waiting for the problem to get worse (which could compromise your ability to pursue a claim for full damages, in some cases)
• Beginning the process of completing the needed paperwork to begin an inquiry, schedule hearings, conduct investigations, and ultimately resolve the issues at hand
• Preventing further harms to an individual, estate, or group of involved parties
• Informing other parties who may be affected, such as vendors, professional service providers, and beneficiaries
• Opening up options like a motion for discovery, an injunction to halt certain activities, or proceedings to have a fiduciary removed before they can cause further harm
• Helping you and others affected feel vindicated rather than helpless, since you took the needed action instead of being passive

New Mexico Financial & Estate Planning Attorneys is available to help you understand the laws and procedures that could affect your breach of fiduciary duty case in Las Cruces. Call our experienced team any time you fear that harm is occurring (or will soon occur) because of a fiduciary’s actions. We can help you build your case while taking all available steps to mitigate further harm.

When to Reach out to a Breach of Fiduciary Lawyer in Las Cruces

Examples of suspicious or inappropriate behavior by a fiduciary can include:

• Errors, inaccuracies, or unusual statements in official documents — Fiduciaries may try to “cook the books” by including false information to cover their tracks. They may also be grossly incompetent, making mistakes that could be costly while hiding the full story from those they have a duty to serve.
• Unexpected account deficiencies — Estate planning is designed to provide financial security. When accounts are suddenly depleted or fiduciaries are saying that bills cannot be covered, this can be a red flag that something has gone wrong.
• They mix assets into their personal accounts — Fiduciaries are allowed to use assets for legitimate, duty-related reasons, but they have to take steps to account for each expense. They should also be prepared to explain why the expenses were necessary and directly related to their duties. If they add separate funds to their own accounts, begin charging unrelated expenses, or use funds for personal matters, this is likely to end in disaster.
• They refuse to communicate — Fiduciaries have an obligation to deliver expense statements and other reports to certain parties, including estate and trust beneficiaries. These reports must be delivered in a timely manner. Failure to do so, for whatever reason, can be a violation of their duties as well as a sign that something is wrong.
• Unexpected changes or outcomes occur — Fiduciaries are bound to follow the guidelines, strategies, and plans set by those who vested them with responsibility. They generally aren’t allowed to make changes to arrangements, even if they have wide discretion. If changes are being made unexpectedly, interested parties can demand more information. They could also ask the court to stop changes from going through (or continuing).
• They are going against the wishes of the principal (or other party) — Direct violations of instructions, guidelines, and rules are always a breach in duty, even if the party committing the violation “means well.”
• They stand to personally gain from their actions in unfair ways — A fiduciary can be a beneficiary to a trust, estate, or other legal arrangement. They are also allowed to make decisions that benefit them, so long as they put their duties and the interests of others first. However, they have a critical duty to avoid conflicts of interest. A court can compel them to take steps to mitigate these conflicts, such as by forcing them to appoint a neutral third-party to make certain decisions.
• There were suspicious circumstances leading up to their appointment — While a breach of fiduciary duty claim technically cannot be pursued until a documented violation has occurred, there may be other causes of action that can be pursued to limit their abilities or have them removed if there was something illegitimate or inappropriate about the way they were appointed. An attorney can help you investigate to determine if their appointment was the result of undue influence, fraud, misrepresentation, duress (i.e., threats) and other abnormal circumstances.

Remember that you can never be too careful. While it may not be prudent to directly accuse someone too early (which could cause undue harm to their reputation, in some cases), you always have the right to investigate. This is especially true when you are someone who has been (or could be) negatively affected by their actions.

When you contact an attorney at the first sign of trouble, you open the door to learning more and can stop bad actors in their tracks as soon as possible.

What Is a “Fiduciary”?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau provides a succinct definition: “A fiduciary is someone who manages money or property for someone else.”

Some examples of fiduciaries include:

• An estate’s executor (known as a personal representative in New Mexico and other states)
• A trustee
• Someone designated as a healthcare agent, proxy, surrogate, or attorney-in-fact, such as through an advance healthcare directive, a healthcare power of attorney, or other form of documented selection
• Someone designated as a financial agent or attorney-in-fact through a financial power of attorney
• A guardian, conservator, financial custodian, or protector thereof
• A provider of certain professional services, such as an attorney, accountant, financial advisor, or insurance agent

The key determination, however, is not a title but rather a relationship. A fiduciary relationship exists any time someone has been trusted to manage something valuable. A contract or legal framework may be needed to establish this relationship, meaning that casual promises or arrangements may not qualify, in some cases.

Who Can File a Claim for a Breach of Fiduciary Duty in Las Cruces?

Anyone who was harmed by a fiduciary could have standing to take legal action against them. For example, if a trustee contracts a security company to protect a piece of property but then does not pay them, the company could sue the trustee for non-performance or breach of contract.

However, only specific parties have standing to file a claim for breach of fiduciary duties. These are, generally, the individuals the fiduciary has a specific duty towards. They can include:

• Beneficiaries of a trust
• Beneficiaries of an estate (AKA heirs listed in a will)
• Co-trustees, or others sharing duties with a fiduciary
• Principals or grantors who appointed the fiduciary

Other individuals may also have standing to file a claim, usually because a specific statute grants it to them. For example, New Mexico’s Uniform Power of Attorney statute § 45-5B-117 states that an agent could be held liable by a “successor in interest” to a principal. In other words, someone who was going to inherit something from the principal can sue an agent for breach of fiduciary duty if their actions improperly diminished the value of the principal’s estate.

Similarly, § 45-3-712 provides that a “personal representative is liable to interested persons for damage or loss resulting from breach of the personal representative’s fiduciary duty.” This statute could extend standing to individuals who have a reasonable claim against the estate.

For example, suppose that a child was disinherited in a parent’s will but had valid, good-faith reasons to believe that the will was a forgery. In that case, the personal representative has a duty to avoid giving away estate property before the contested claim is resolved. While the personal representative is allowed to defend against the claim, they cannot assume the claim will fail or be dismissed, since this claimant is, technically, an interested party — at least until a court says otherwise.

How Do I Know If I Have a Claim for a Breach of Fiduciary Duty?

All breach of fiduciary claims need to make four main provings to be successful:

• The accused party had a fiduciary relationship with and, thereby, duties towards the person making the claim
• The fiduciary breached their duties
• The claimant suffered damages, which can be material (e.g., a diminished inheritance), imminent (i.e., unavoidable future losses), or reputational
• The claimant’s damages were directly caused by the fiduciary’s failure to follow their duties

Sometimes, proving one of these elements can be easy, but all four are needed for a claim to be successful. The claimant party also needs to be prepared to specifically describe and document their damages so that they can request appropriate compensation.

Requesting Relief After a Breach in Fiduciary Duty

A party claiming a breach in fiduciary duty typically wants to have their interests restored. This means that the fiduciary must repay them for losses or otherwise guarantee a future transfer.

The injured party may also want to request non-monetary forms of relief from a court, such as:

• The reversal of a transfer, transaction, conversion, or other action affecting their interests
• An injunction to prevent a possible future action
• The appointment of a co-trustee, co-agent, or co-executor, or supervisor to guide and monitor the fiduciary’s further actions
• A requirement that the fiduciary secure a form of insurance, bond, or other guarantee against harm to an estate or trust
• The requirement to immediately transfer an interest to the claimant, such as a property deed, patent, or power of appointment
• The removal of the fiduciary
• A demand to furnish records and information
• A requirement to hire a neutral party to arbitrate or make a decision where the fiduciary could have a conflict of interest
• A demand to avoid future negligence, such as a requirement to properly secure and care for estate property until probate has concluded

The relief you request should depend upon the nature of the breach, the damages it caused, and the interests of the parties involved. You can refer to a Las Cruces breach of fiduciary duty attorney for guidance. They can reveal the best way to build your case and advise you on what forms of relief to request.

Protect Your Interests and Those You Care About

New Mexico Financial & Estate Planning Attorneys can help you investigate a possible instance or pattern involving a breach of fiduciary duty.

We can also help you take steps to avoid possible future breaches, especially if you are someone currently engaged in estate planning. Our knowledgeable probate and estate planning lawyers in Las Cruces have experience from all sides of the equation. You can receive tailored advice, along with the next steps to take to prevent further harm.

Learn more about your options and how the law impacts your case during a confidential, no-obligation consultation. Call our offices at (505) 503-1637 or contact us online to schedule an appointment today.