What Is ACTEC and the Fellows Directory?

What the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel is, what its Fellow directory shows, and the self-reported caveat attached to every entry.

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) is an organization of trust and estate lawyers and law professors in the United States and around the world, whose Fellows are peer-elected. How that election works is covered separately in ACTEC Fellow vs. board certification.

Source: ACTEC, About

Who ACTEC's Fellows are

ACTEC Fellows are skilled and experienced in the preparation of wills and trusts, estate planning and probate procedure, and administration of trusts and estates of decedents, minors, and incompetents. The substantive areas of expertise ACTEC lists as represented within the College include the preparation of wills and trusts, probate, trust and guardianship administration, and probate, trust and protective proceedings litigation, alongside several other practice areas.

Source: ACTEC, About

What an ACTEC directory entry shows

ACTEC publishes a directory to find a Fellow in your area. Entries in the directory identify the jurisdictions in which that Fellow is licensed and authorized to practice law. ACTEC states plainly: the information provided is self-reported by Fellows and not verified or guaranteed by ACTEC.

Source: ACTEC, Find an ACTEC Fellow

A directory entry is one data point in deciding whether to contact a Fellow, not the whole picture. How to choose a probate litigator covers what else is worth confirming, including at a first consultation, and ACTEC Fellow vs. board certification covers how the Fellow credential itself is earned, including ACTEC's own election process.