“A professional trustee is probably easier to define by what we are not,” begins Greg Bowman, CEO of Northwest Trustee & Management Services in this podcast interview with Senior Wealth Strategist Glen Goland, JD, CFP. A trustee is not an investment advisor, attorney, or accountant, but their services can be invaluable during a family’s time of need in protecting and preserving a family’s legacy. When does a family need the services of a professional trustee? Bowman discusses the independent trust model, and when a family might choose to engage a professional trustee, such as in complex family situations like multiple marriages, disharmony among family members, addiction issues, or other situations that might call for an outside objective party’s help.

“My concern and goal is to allow the family members – the kids normally – to be around the Thanksgiving dinner table together. I don’t want them to be fighting over assets or estates,” Bowman says. He discusses how having an outside party dedicated specifically to helping administer the family trust can help to maintain harmony in the family and establish a long-term strategy focused on fairness.

You can listen to the full podcast on YouTube or Soundcloud.