What is Part 36 and why does it matter?

In many medical malpractice cases, after the incapacitated person receives a certain amount of money, that money must be put in a secure place (preferably an article 81 guardianship or trust). In doing so, a trustee or a guardian must be appointed to ensure that the funds are prudently invested and that the client’s needs are taken care of completely. The judge would then look at what is known as Part 36 to either appoint a trustee/guardian or to confirm that the trustee/guardian, other than their parents, requested by the incapacitated person is in fact apart of Part 36. In recent history, the compliance of guardianship and trust lawsuits have become increasingly more widespread, contributing to the complicated atmosphere of the legal guardianship industry today. To regulate and expedite the process by which guardianship and trust lawsuits are handled, the New York State Supreme Court established Part 36. Part 36 is a list of individuals eligible to act as trustees or guardians in lawsuits that require their expertise and experience.

Part 36 does a lot to monitor the guardianship legal industry but what does it do for the incapacitated person? To answer this question, we must revert to what is known as fiduciary responsibility. When a trustee/guardian is appointed or requested by an incapacitated person, that trustee/guardian has a legally binding duty to act in the best interest of the incapacitated person and to help them by any means. This fiduciary responsibility is what differentiates trustees/guardians whose profession resides in the legal industry such as attorneys, from trustees/guardians who are responsible for taking care of the incapacitated person’s money such as investment advisors or trust companies. This is where Fogel Capital Management stands out in comparison to other guardians. What makes Fogel Capital Management special besides the fact that we are appointed to Part 36 is that we act in accordance with both, our fiduciary responsibility to the incapacitated person and with the SEC to ensure that the client is getting our full attention regarding their personal, legal, and financial concerns. Whereas other investment advisors who act as trustees/guardians solely act in compliance with the SEC and the New York State Supreme Court, but we go a step further. With our fiduciary aspiration, we help the incapacitated person in any way possible and make sure that they are as well off as possible following the tragedy they experienced. No person should have to deal with the unnecessary hardships and liabilities that occur after a misfortunate event and for this reason, we at Fogel Capital pride ourselves on doing as much as possible to ensure that everything is made as easy as possible after a tragedy. Being a part of Part 36 is significant but what is more important to us is that we have a greater ability in helping incapacitated people and their families have a better experience with the burdensome problems that arise after the case has been settled.