Ethics, Professional Responsibility, and Practice Management
Fiduciary and professional duties
Practitioners in probate and tax must understand the duties owed to clients and to the court. Key concepts include conflict of interest (representing both the PR and beneficiaries, or multiple beneficiaries with divergent interests), confidentiality, competence, and communication. Know the distinction between the fiduciary duty owed by the PR and the professional duty owed by the attorney or tax preparer.
Tax practice standards
Understand Circular 230 obligations: due diligence, reliance on client information, and the prohibition on frivolous positions. Know the preparer penalty framework and the importance of documenting advice. Candidates should recognize that a practitioner cannot prepare a return or advise on a position lacking substantial authority without disclosure.
Practice management traps
- Representing an estate and an individual beneficiary may be a conflict if interests diverge.
- A PR who is also a beneficiary faces self-dealing scrutiny.
- Confidentiality continues after the engagement ends and after death.
- Failure to communicate material developments to the client is an ethics violation.
Worked example
An attorney is asked to represent both the PR and a beneficiary who disputes the PR's accounting. The interests are adverse; the attorney should decline joint representation or obtain informed consent where permitted, and refer one party to independent counsel.