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100 Dick. L. Rev. 29 (1995-1996)
Attorny Liability to Estate Beneficiaries: The Privity Passes Through

handle is hein.journals/dlr100 and id is 39 raw text is: Attorney Liability to Estate Beneficiaries: The Privity Passes Through Todd A. Fuller* I. Introduction Traditional notions of liability do not easily apply to the relationship between an estate attorney and beneficiaries of the estate. No direct attorney-client relationship exists; the attorney is hired by the estate's personal representative - not by the benefi- ciaries.' The beneficiaries, thus, are considered third parties to the agreement between the attorney and the personal representative. This does not mean, however, that liability does not, or should not, exist when the attorney's acts or omissions cause harm to the beneficiaries. Traditional arguments provide that attorneys owe no duty to anyone other than their clients, with whom they are in privity.2 Even today, the extent of an attorney's liability to third parties is difficult to determine because of the broad range of possibilities in which an attorney's actions might affect someone who is not her client.3 It is virtually impossible to create a general rule to encom- pass every situation involving an attorney and the various persons that attorney's actions may affect throughout the course of * Associate with Mette, Evans & Woodside in Harrisburg, PA. B.A., University of Pittsburgh, 1992; J.D., University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 1995. 1. This individual is generally referred to as a personal representative or executor when appointed by the testator, or an administrator when appointed in the event of intestacy. See infra notes 20-22 and accompanying text. For purposes of this Article, the distinction between the two is superfluous as the fiduciary duties owed by this individual to the estate beneficiaries are identical. Hereinafter the estate fiduciary, therefore, will be referred to as the personal representative. 2. See National Say. Bank v. Ward, 100 U.S. 195 (1879); see also infra text accompany- ing notes 64-74. 3. Examples include: successful representation of an accused criminal who later commits a crime; divorce litigation that negatively impacts the economic well-being of the children involved; drafting wills for a testator who wishes to disinherit his children.