Your estate isn’t just limited to houses, bank accounts, vehicles, and belongings. Today it may contain e-mail accounts, cloud files, social media profiles, on-line subscriptions, cryptocurrency, electronic photographs and other electronic belongings. These assets can be hard for family members to find or sort out after a loved one passes. Utah has enacted statutes that give fiduciary rights to a right to access certain digital assets. Those rights do not, however, guarantee that any account can be opened or transferred automatically.
Utah Gives Fiduciaries a Legal Framework
The Utah Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act sets rules for disposing of digital assets upon death. Under the law, a fiduciary with appropriate authority may have access to some digital assets that the decedant had a legal interest in. A fiduciary can be a personal representative of an estate, or any other person who has been recognized under the law. The law also imposes fiduciary duties of care, loyalty and confidentiality on those who manage digital assets. Access should be linked with real estate duties.
Access does not equal unlimited control
Just because someone has passed does not give a fiduciary unlimited authority. Under Utah law, terms of service and other laws would apply to fiduciary authority. There are copyright regulations that may also apply. A fiduciary may not exercise the authority to represent the deceased fiduciary. Additionally, service providers might need documentation before releasing information. This can be a death certificate and proof of the fiduciary’s legal authorization to the account.
Cryptocurrency Needs Additional Prep
Digital assets may also consist of cryptocurrency or other blockchain-based assets. Utah law defines digital assets separately, as virtual currency, cryptocurrency stablecoins, non-fungible tokens and any other virtual asset having economic or proprietary interests. Self-hosted wallets can pose more problems as well, because it is difficult to come up with a regular account provider that can just reset access. But valuable assets could be lost even in the estate’s possession, if the information regarding wallets keys or recovery is not right.
Create a Digital Estate Plan
The first step in a practical digital estate plan is to make a list of important accounts and assets. It should designate what kind of asset it is and how the asset should be treated after death. Sensitive passwords and private keys should not be stored in a will but rather in a secure location. When working with an estate planning attorney in Utah, it is important to make sure that digital instructions are implemented in conjunction with the estate plan as a whole. Ongoing reviews can also be beneficial as digital services are subject to frequent change. Confusion can be minimized and fiduciaries can more easily implement the deceased’s expressed intentions through good planning.
