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Wills, Trusts & Estates Keyed to Bonfield
In the Matter of Michael Duffy
Citation:
79 A.D.3d 1732, 913 N.Y.S.2d 627 (N.Y. app. Div. 2010)Facts
Following the issuance of Letters, Duffy developed a plan to distribute the decedent’s stock portfolio in kind to Stone, the primary beneficiary. The decedent had held the portfolio, which had supported both her and Stone’s income needs, for many years. Duffy believed retention of the existing investments was prudent, particularly since Stone was considerably younger and thus represented a long-term investment horizon. He argues the portfolio was sufficiently diversified, albeit aggressively invested, and that other estate assets balanced any lack of conservative holdings. Duffy also contends that the market decline during his administration was driven by unforeseeable economic events, and fiduciaries managing assets during such conditions should be shown leniency. In contrast, Stone argues that Duffy failed to perform adequate analysis, did not communicate with him, and unreasonably retained a concentrated and volatile portfolio despite a sharp market downturn. He asserts that the investment strategy failed to match the short-term nature of estate administration and resulted in avoidable losses for which Duffy should be held liable.
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11m 20s