Missouri Revised Statutes § 475.094 - Conservator, authorized exercise of powers
AI-assisted research summary: A conservator may use several listed powers only after notice and express court authorization; the court must mainly follow what the protectee would have decided, and a conservator cannot revoke or amend a durable power of attorney without court authorization.
475.094. Conservator, authorized exercise of powers. — 1. After notice to interested persons and upon express authorization of the court, a conservator may: (1) Make gifts that the protectee might have been expected to make including, but not limited to, gifts to qualify for government benefits or to reduce federal estate taxes; (2) Convey, release, or disclaim contingent and expectant interests in property, including marital property rights and any right of survivorship incident to joint tenancy or tenancy by the entireties; (3) Exercise or release a power of appointment; (4) Create a revocable or irrevocable trust of property of the estate, whether the trust extends beyond the duration of the conservatorship, or revoke or amend a trust revocable by the protected person; (5) Exercise rights to elect options and change beneficiaries under insurance policies and annuities or surrender the policies and annuities for cash value; (6) Exercise any right to an elective share in the estate of the protectee's deceased spouse and to renounce or disclaim any interest by testate or intestate succession or by transfer during lifetime. 2. The court, in exercising or in approving a conservator's exercise of the powers listed under subsection 1 of this section, shall consider primarily the decision that the protectee would have made, to the extent that the decision can be ascertained. The court shall also consider: (1) The financial needs of the protectee and the needs of individuals who are in fact dependent on the protectee for support and the interest of creditors; (2) Possible reduction of income, estate, inheritance, or other tax liabilities; (3) Eligibility for government assistance; (4) The protectee's previous pattern of giving or level of support; (5) The existing estate plan; (6) The protectee's life expectancy and the probability that the conservatorship will terminate before the protectee's death; and (7) Any other factors the court considers relevant. 3. Without authorization of the court, a conservator shall not revoke or amend a durable power of attorney of which the protectee is the principal. (L. 1983 S.B. 44 & 45, A.L. 2018 S.B. 806)