As Wes’ guardian, Meg has been managing her father’s investments since his mountain climbing accident left him unable to do it for himself.   

She has already discovered that Wes managed his investments very well before his accident.  Now he has been telling her what he thinks she should do with his money. 

Meg has been tempted to listen, because it would help Wes feel more in control again.  But when she checked on two investments he “ordered” her to make, they proved to be worthless. 

Meg does not have to follow Wes’ orders.  In this case, she should not follow them, because if they are irresponsible decisions, she, not Wes, can be held liable by the court. 

After all, in order to be named his guardian, Meg just spent a lot of time and effort to show that Wes no longer had the ability to make such decisions.  It would hardly make sense for the court to allow her to shirk her new responsibility by saying that she was just following Wes’ orders.

In short, the ‘he made me do it’ excuse not only fails to work with most mothers, it also fails to work for the court in a guardianship. 

Estate planning can help give investment direction to certain family members, or even to an investment professional, if the need arises for someone else to handle your finances.  For help planning your own estate, call our office at (815) 436-1996 for an appointment.

© 2015 Gruber Law Office, Ltd.