Assessing Capacity in Estate Planning: Best Practices for In-Person and Virtual Client Meetings | Free CLE

Estate planning attorneys are required under the Rules of Professional Conduct to assess whether a client possesses the capacity to execute a will, power of attorney, health care directive, or other estate planning documents. These determinations become even more challenging in high-volume legal clinics, pro bono settings, and virtual appointments where attorneys often have limited time and little prior relationship with the client.

This practical Minnesota CLE provides attorneys with a framework for evaluating client capacity while complying with the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct and applicable Minnesota law. Participants will learn how to distinguish diminished capacity from temporary confusion, identify red flags for undue influence and financial exploitation, and conduct effective capacity assessments in both in-person and virtual environments. The program will also address documentation practices, ethical considerations, and strategies for protecting client autonomy while ensuring the validity of estate planning documents.

Using realistic case studies drawn from legal aid and pro bono estate planning clinics, presenters will discuss practical interviewing techniques, environmental considerations, when to meet privately with clients, and when additional medical evaluation or postponement of representation may be appropriate.

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Presented by: Amy Jenson and Kyle Barlow | Fredrikson & Byron, PA

Application pending for one Minnesota Ethics CLE credit.

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Amy L. Jenson earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Minnesota with distinction and graduated magna cum laude from Hamline University School of Law. Admitted to practice in both Minnesota and North Dakota, she belongs to both state bar associations as well as the Red River Valley Estate Planning Council. Amy practices with the Trusts & Estates Group in Frederikson’s Fargo office. In addition to the preparation of wills, trusts (both revocable and irrevocable), powers of attorney and health care directives, Amy’s practice also includes real estate transfers and business entity formation/restructuring. In addition, Amy works with families, trustees, and personal representatives through post-death administration of estates, both in probate and trust administration. Amy also serves as the Lead Project Attorney for Justice North’s Legacy Links Pro Bono Estate Planning Project. Amy prioritizes approachability and efficiency. It is her goal that clients feel comfortable, understand their planning, and are confident that their concerns are addressed.

Kyle Barlow's educational background in both law and business allows him to approach the legal issues confronting his clients with a business mindset and to form solutions that are closely aligned with the clients’ business priorities. Coupled with this fluency in the language of business is Kyle’s small-town work ethic and experience. Having grown up in the farming community in Northwest Iowa, he has first-hand knowledge of the challenges his clients face as they plan to pass on their estates to the next generation in such way as to ensure the preservation of family legacy. His primary goal is to produce solutions that are not only efficient and cost-effective but also emotionally satisfactory for the clients, reconciling what is good for business with what is good for the family by securing fair disposition of the business that heads off any potential animosities or estrangement within the family.