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Case Summary
In the Matter of the Estate of Mark Rothko
In the Matter of the Estate of Mark Rothko, 379 N.Y.S.2d 923 (N.Y. Sur. Ct. 1975), modified, 392 N.Y.S.2d 870 (N.Y. App. Div. 1977), aff’d, 372 N.E.2d 291 (N.Y. 1977), further proceedings at 407 N.Y.S.2d 954 (N.Y. Sur. Ct. 1978).
Précis
In the Matter of the Estate of Mark Rothko lasted seven years and involved the Will of one of the most prominent American Abstract Expressionist artists of the twentieth century, Mark Rothko, who died by suicide in 1970. Although in essence an inheritance dispute initiated by Rothko’s two children who were dissatisfied with their share of the Estate under the Will, the case is remembered because of the issues of self-dealing, conflict of interest, and breach of
fiduciary duty
1) Any action, performance, task, or observance owed by a person in an official or fiduciary capacity; 2) A duty of utmost good faith, trust, confidence, and candor owed by a fiduciary (such as a lawyer or corporate officer) to the beneficiary (such as a lawyer's client or a shareholder); a duty to act with the highest degree of honesty and loyalty toward another person and in the best interests of the other person (such as the duty that one partner owes to another) (Black’s Law Dictionary (8th ed. 2004)).
fiduciary duty on the part of Rothko’s chosen executors – Bernard Reis, Morton Levine, and Theodoros Stamos – that were raised at trial.
Associated Legal Decision(s)
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