§ 13.4.1.1 PROBATE COURT'S DISCRETION

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 13.4.1.1 Probate Court's Discretion

Regarding a guardian or conservator's attorneys' fees, "the trial court has a substantial degree of discretion in determining what is reasonable under the circumstances." In re Estate and Guardianship of Purton, 7 Ariz. App. 526, 537, 441 P.2d 561, 572 (1968).

In Purton, when a former ward attained the age of majority, she objected to the final accounting of her former guardian¹¹ for alleged misappropriation/misuse of funds. Although the trial court did not agree with all of the Petitioner's contentions, it did find some were meritorious, and surcharged the guardian accordingly. Nonetheless, the trial court awarded the guardian her attorneys' fees from the estate. On appeal, the appellate court let stand the award of attorneys' fees incurred in the administration of the guardianship based on the court's discretion, but overruled the trial court's award of attorneys' fees incurred in the litigation over the final accounting. The appellate court held it was improper for the trial court to award the guardian her attorneys' fees because she was "defending her personal position in a contest brought by the ward for good cause." Id. Likewise, the appellate court denied the guardian her attorneys' fees on...