Minnesota adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act in 2016, at Minn. Stat. ch. 521A. It answers a question every estate now presents — what a personal representative can get from Google, Apple, Meta, or a bank’s online portal — and the answer has a structure most people get backwards.
The default is split. Your fiduciary gets the metadata automatically. Your fiduciary gets the contents only if you consented.
The catalog versus the content
Chapter 521A draws a line borrowed from federal privacy law. Section 521A.02, subd. 5, defines “catalog of electronic communications” as “information that identifies each person with which a user has had an electronic communication, the time and date of the communication, and the electronic address of the person.” Subdivision 7 defines “content of an electronic communication” as “information concerning the substance or meaning of the communication” that has been sent or received by the user, is in electronic storage with a provider to the public or carried by a remote computing service to the public, and “is not readily accessible to the public.”
The two get very different treatment.
Content — § 521A.07. A custodian must disclose the content of a deceased user’s electronic communications only “[i]f a deceased user consented or a court directs disclosure,” and then only on production of a written request, a certified copy of the death certificate, a certified copy of the letters of appointment (or a court order, or an Affidavit of Collection of Personal Property executed under § 524.3-1201), and — “unless the user provided direction using an online tool” — “a copy of the user’s will, trust, power of attorney, or other record evidencing the user’s consent to disclosure of the content of electronic communications.”
Everything else — § 521A.08. “Unless the user prohibited disclosure of digital assets or the court directs otherwise,” the custodian “shall disclose” to the personal representative “a catalog of electronic communications sent or received by the user and digital assets, other than the content of electronic communications.” The same request-and-authority documents apply, minus the consent record.
So the defaults are inverted between the two categories: content is off unless you turned it on; everything else is on unless you turned it off.
That “everything else” category is larger than it sounds. It includes cryptocurrency, domain names, digital photographs, loyalty and rewards balances, files in cloud storage, and the account records that let a fiduciary find assets at all. In most estates it is the entire practical need. The content of the decedent’s email is usually wanted for a different reason — to find out what happened — and that is precisely the reason the statute is stingy about it.
The online tool beats your will
Section 521A.04 sets a three-tier hierarchy, and the top tier is not the estate plan.
(a) A user may use an online tool to direct the custodian to disclose to a designated recipient or not to disclose some or all of the user’s digital assets, including the content of electronic communications. If the online tool allows the user to modify or delete a direction at all times, a direction regarding disclosure using an online tool overrides a contrary direction by the user in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record.
(b) If a user has not used an online tool to give direction under paragraph (a) or if the custodian has not provided an online tool, the user may allow or prohibit in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record disclosure to a fiduciary of some or all of the user’s digital assets, including the content of electronic communications.
(c) A user’s direction under paragraph (a) or (b) overrides a contrary provision in a terms-of-service agreement that does not require the user to act affirmatively and distinctly from the user’s assent to the terms of service.
Tier one is the provider’s own in-account setting — Google’s Inactive Account Manager, Apple’s Legacy Contact, Facebook’s Legacy Contact. Tier two is the will, trust, or power of attorney. Tier three is the terms of service.
The consequence for drafting is significant and rarely acted on: a client who names a Legacy Contact at Apple in 2019 and then signs a will in 2026 directing that all digital assets go to her personal representative has, as to that Apple account, a will provision that loses. The online tool controls, provided it “allows the user to modify or delete a direction at all times.”
This means an estate plan that addresses digital assets is only half a plan. The other half is an inventory of which providers offer an online tool and what the client set there. That is a client task, not a lawyer task, and it should be assigned in writing.
Paragraph (c) is the user-friendly half of the section. A boilerplate terms-of-service clause forbidding transfer or disclosure does not defeat a user’s direction — unless the provider required the user “to act affirmatively and distinctly from the user’s assent to the terms of service.” A separate, specific opt-in survives; a buried clause in a clickwrap does not.
What the statute does not do
Section 521A.05 is the reality check, and it is three short paragraphs:
(a) This chapter does not change or impair a right of a custodian or a user under a terms-of-service agreement to access and use digital assets of the user.
(b) This chapter does not give a fiduciary or designated recipient any new or expanded rights other than those held by the user for whom, or for whose estate, the fiduciary or designated recipient acts or represents.
(c) A fiduciary’s or designated recipient’s access to digital assets may be modified or eliminated by a user, by federal law, or by a terms-of-service agreement if the user has not provided direction under section 521A.04.
Paragraph (b) is the one that surprises families. A fiduciary steps into the user’s shoes and no further. If the decedent had a license to stream music rather than ownership of files, the estate inherits a license that terminated at death, not a music library. If the account was non-transferable in the user’s own hands, chapter 521A does not make it transferable in the executor’s.
Section 521A.15(b) says the same from the fiduciary’s side: authority over a digital asset “is subject to the applicable terms of service” except as § 521A.04 provides, “is subject to other applicable law, including copyright law,” is “limited by the scope of the fiduciary’s duties,” and “may not be used to impersonate the user.”
Applicability is set by § 521A.03: the chapter reaches a fiduciary acting under a will or power of attorney, a personal representative, a conservatorship proceeding, and a trustee under a trust; it applies to a custodian “if the user resides in this state or resided in this state at the time of the user’s death”; and it “does not apply to a digital asset of an employer used by an employee in the ordinary course of the employer’s business.”
How the custodian may respond
Section 521A.06(a) leaves the form of disclosure entirely to the provider — “at its sole discretion” it may grant full account access, grant partial access “sufficient to perform the tasks with which the fiduciary or designated recipient is charged,” or “provide a fiduciary or designated recipient a copy in a record of any digital asset that, on the date the custodian received the request for disclosure, the user could have accessed if the user were alive and had full capacity and access to the account.”
In practice, providers overwhelmingly choose option (3) — an export file, not a password. A fiduciary who is planning around getting the login is planning around something the statute does not require anyone to give.
Three further limits in § 521A.06: the custodian “may assess a reasonable administrative charge”; it “need not disclose … a digital asset deleted by a user”; and where a partial request would require segregation imposing “an undue burden,” either side may seek a court order directing disclosure of a date-limited subset, everything, nothing, or “all of the user’s digital assets to the court for review in chambers.”
The compliance clock, and how to enforce it
Section 521A.16(a) supplies the deadline:
Not later than 60 days after receipt of the information required under sections 521A.07 to 521A.15, a custodian shall comply with a request under this chapter from a fiduciary or designated recipient to disclose digital assets or terminate an account. If the custodian fails to comply, the fiduciary or designated recipient may apply to the court for an order directing compliance.
An order under that paragraph “must contain a finding that compliance is not in violation of United States Code, title 18, section 2702” — the Stored Communications Act’s disclosure prohibition. That finding is not boilerplate; it is the reason providers insist on a court order in close cases, and a proposed order that omits it will not do the job.
Three more provisions govern how these disputes actually go. The custodian “may notify the user that a request for disclosure or to terminate an account was made.” It may deny a request “if the custodian is aware of any lawful access to the account following the receipt of the fiduciary’s request” — so continued family logins can cost the fiduciary the administrative route, though the provision speaks to denying a request and says nothing about a court petition under paragraph (a). And a custodian acting in good faith is immune under paragraph (f).
Powers of attorney: this is the drafting change to make
For a living principal the rules are stricter, and they turn on the words in the instrument.
Content — § 521A.09. A custodian discloses the content of the principal’s electronic communications only “[t]o the extent a power of attorney expressly grants an agent authority over the content of electronic communications sent or received by the principal,” on a written request, the power of attorney containing that express grant, and “a certification by the agent, under penalty of perjury, that the power of attorney is in effect.”
Everything else — § 521A.10. The custodian discloses the catalog and other digital assets to “an agent with specific authority over digital assets or general authority to act on behalf of a principal,” on the same three items.
So a Minnesota power of attorney that says nothing about digital assets will get the agent the catalog — general authority suffices under § 521A.10 — but not the content of a single email. Reaching the content requires express language, and the express language should be in the document before capacity becomes a question. Parallel provisions apply to trustees and to conservators elsewhere in the chapter.
What a fiduciary is allowed to do once inside
Section 521A.15 answers the question that keeps executors up at night: is accessing the decedent’s account a crime?
(d) 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 609.891.
Paragraph (e) extends the same protection to accessing tangible personal property “and any digital asset stored in it” — the laptop, the phone, the external drive. Paragraph (c) confirms the fiduciary’s right to access “any digital asset in which the decedent, protected person, principal, or settlor had a right or interest and that is not held by a custodian or subject to a terms-of-service agreement,” which is the category the whole custodian apparatus does not reach: files on a hard drive, a locally stored crypto wallet, a password manager’s local vault.
The duties come with it. Paragraph (a) applies “the legal duties imposed on a fiduciary charged with managing tangible property” to digital assets, “including: (1) the duty of care; (2) the duty of loyalty; and (3) the duty of confidentiality.” A personal representative who reads the decedent’s correspondence for reasons unrelated to administration is not doing something the statute blesses — see what a Minnesota personal representative is liable for.
Closing an account is its own procedure. Section 521A.15(g) lets a fiduciary request termination in writing, with a certified death certificate if the user is deceased and “a certified copy of the letter of appointment of the representative or a small estate affidavit or court order, court order, power of attorney, or trust giving the fiduciary authority over the account.”
What to actually do
For the client:
- Set the online tool at every major provider, and record what you set. It outranks your will.
- If you want your fiduciary to read your email, say so expressly in the will, trust, or power of attorney. Silence means no.
- Keep an inventory of accounts and identifiers. Sections 521A.07(5)(i) and 521A.08(4)(i) let the custodian demand “a number, username, address, or other unique subscriber or account identifier,” and a fiduciary who cannot supply one is stuck asking a court to find that the account exists.
- Do not put passwords in the will. A will becomes a public court record when it is probated.
For the fiduciary:
- Send the § 521A.08 request first. It is the easier showing and it usually gets what the estate actually needs.
- Calendar 60 days from the date the custodian has everything, and be prepared to petition with the 18 U.S.C. § 2702 finding in the proposed order.
- Move quickly. Section 521A.06(c) means deleted assets are gone, and § 521A.16(d) means continued family logins can sink your request.
- Note the alternative authority: an Affidavit of Collection of Personal Property under § 524.3-1201 is accepted authority under both § 521A.07(3) and § 521A.08(3), so a small estate can reach digital assets without any appointment at all.
Madgett Law, LLC
We help Minnesota fiduciaries get at digital assets — preparing and pressing chapter 521A requests, petitioning under § 521A.16 with the findings a custodian will accept, and drafting the express digital-asset authority into wills, trusts, and powers of attorney before it is needed. If a provider is refusing to release a Minnesota decedent’s accounts, or you are building an estate plan that has to account for accounts, call 612-470-6529 or send us a message.
Sources: Minn. Stat. § 521A.02 — subd. 2 (definition of “account”), subd. 3 (definition of “agent”), subd. 5 (definition of “catalog of electronic communications”), subd. 7(1)–(3) (definition of “content of an electronic communication”). Minn. Stat. § 521A.03 — para. (a)(1)–(4) (applicability to a fiduciary under a will or power of attorney, a personal representative, a conservatorship proceeding, and a trustee), para. (b) (custodian coverage where the user resides or resided in this state at death), para. (c) (employer digital assets excluded). Minn. Stat. § 521A.04 — para. (a) (online tool; a direction using an online tool that allows modification or deletion at all times overrides a contrary direction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record), para. (b) (direction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record where no online tool was used or provided), para. (c) (a user’s direction overrides a contrary terms-of-service provision that does not require the user to act affirmatively and distinctly from assent to the terms of service). Minn. Stat. § 521A.05 — para. (a) (no change to custodian or user rights under a terms-of-service agreement), para. (b) (no new or expanded rights beyond those held by the user), para. (c) (access may be modified or eliminated by the user, federal law, or a terms-of-service agreement absent a § 521A.04 direction). Minn. Stat. § 521A.06 — para. (a)(1)–(3) (custodian’s sole discretion to grant full access, partial access, or a copy in a record of assets the user could have accessed), para. (b) (reasonable administrative charge), para. (c) (no duty to disclose a deleted asset), para. (d)(1)–(4) (undue-burden segregation and the four court-ordered outcomes). Minn. Stat. § 521A.07 (content of a deceased user’s electronic communications disclosed only if the user consented or a court directs; the required written request, certified death record, certified letters of appointment or court order or § 524.3-1201 affidavit, consent record unless an online tool was used, and optional identifiers or court findings, including the finding that disclosure would not violate 18 U.S.C. § 2701 et seq. or 47 U.S.C. § 222). Minn. Stat. § 521A.08 (catalog and non-content digital assets disclosed unless the user prohibited disclosure or the court directs otherwise; required documents; optional identifiers, affidavit of reasonable necessity, or court findings). Minn. Stat. § 521A.09(1)–(4) (content of a living principal’s communications requires a power of attorney expressly granting authority over content, plus a written request and an agent’s certification under penalty of perjury that the power is in effect). Minn. Stat. § 521A.10(1)–(4) (catalog and other digital assets to an agent with specific authority over digital assets or general authority to act). Minn. Stat. § 521A.15 — para. (a)(1)–(3) (duties of care, loyalty, and confidentiality apply to digital assets), para. (b)(1)–(4) (authority subject to terms of service except as § 521A.04 provides, subject to other law including copyright, limited by the scope of the fiduciary’s duties, and not usable to impersonate the user), para. (c) (right to access assets not held by a custodian or subject to a terms-of-service agreement), para. (d) (fiduciary is an authorized user for purposes of computer fraud and unauthorized computer access laws, including § 609.891), para. (e)(1)–(2) (tangible personal property and digital assets stored in it), para. (f) (disclosure of information needed to terminate an account), para. (g)(1)–(3) (written termination request and accompanying documents, including a small estate affidavit). Minn. Stat. § 521A.16 — para. (a) (60-day compliance deadline and application to the court for an order directing compliance), para. (b) (order must contain a finding that compliance is not in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2702), para. (c) (custodian may notify the user), para. (d) (custodian may deny where aware of lawful access following receipt of the request), para. (e) (custodian may require a court order with the specified findings), para. (f) (good-faith immunity). Minn. Stat. § 524.3-1201 (affidavit of collection of personal property). Statutory text retrieved from the Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes (2025 edition); no pending-amendment banner appeared on any section cited. Bold emphasis within quoted statutory text is added. No case law is cited in this article. This article is general legal information about Minnesota law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. What a custodian will release, and on what showing, depends on the provider’s terms of service and the user’s own directions. No outcome is promised or implied.