Dolly Parton planned for her estate. The fight with her nephew shows why that matters.

Even the most carefully planned legacy can be tested by family conflict.

In a MarketWatch article examining the estate-planning lessons emerging after Dolly Parton’s death, Day Pitney Trusts & Estates Partner Stephanie Rapp discusses the distinct roles of trustees and beneficiaries and why clear communication about a trust’s terms can help prevent mismatched expectations and disputes.

“The trustee is a fiduciary, and they have control over distribution of assets, but their duty runs to the beneficiary. The beneficiary has economic interest in the trust, but does not have control over the assets. So you really have to distinguish between those roles,” Rapp noted.

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