The Same Standards Apply to Digital Property
This law makes a simple but key point. Managing someone's digital assets carries the same legal duties as managing their physical property. A trustee, personal representative, agent, or conservator must follow the duty of care, loyalty, and privacy.
Cutting corners with digital property can carry the same legal results as mishandling a bank account or a piece of real estate.
The legal duties imposed on a fiduciary charged with managing tangible property apply to the management of digital assets, including all of the following, if applicable: 1. The duty of care. 2. The duty of loyalty. 3. The duty of confidentiality.
A.R.S. § 14-13115(A)The duty of privacy is especially important for digital assets. A fiduciary who gains access to email, social media, or cloud storage may find deeply personal data. The law requires the same care a fiduciary would apply to private financial records.
Limits on Fiduciary Power
Access does not mean total control. A fiduciary's power over digital assets is limited in several ways. It must follow the platform's terms of service, with few exceptions.
Copyright law also applies. The fiduciary cannot go beyond the scope of their role. And they may never post or act as if they were the user.
A fiduciary acting within the scope of the fiduciary's duties is an authorized user of the property of the decedent, protected person, principal or settlor for the purpose of applicable computer-fraud and unauthorized-computer-access laws, including section 13-2316.
A.R.S. § 14-13115(D)This last rule is a practical shield. It confirms that accessing accounts within the scope of fiduciary duties does not break computer fraud laws. Without this protection, a successor trustee logging into a deceased person's accounts could face criminal charges.