Chapter 53 - § 53.14 • CONFIDENTIAL OR FIDUCIARY RELATIONSHIP

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 53.14 • CONFIDENTIAL OR FIDUCIARY RELATIONSHIP

When an heir or devisee at the time of the preparation and execution of the will was in a confidential or fiduciary relationship with the testator and was actively involved in the execution or preparation of the will, the law presumes the will was procured by undue influence. CJI-Civ. 34:17 (CLE ed. 2020).

A fiduciary relationship exists whenever a person is in the position of attorney, guardian, trustee, executor, agent, conservator, personal representative, partner, joint venturer, etc. and because of that position has legal power to affect the interest of another that has been entrusted to him or her. Such person is under a duty to deal with the interests of another with upmost good faith and solely for the benefit of the other. CJI-Civ. 26:2 (CLE ed. 2020). Colorado courts have generally held that where beneficiaries are also fiduciaries, the temptation for overreaching is great. Judkins v. Carpenter, 537 P.2d 737 (Colo. 1975). A confidential relationship exists whenever one person gains the trust and confidence of another person by acting or pretending to act for the benefit of or in the interest...