Experienced probate attorney for New York Surrogate's Court Cases - probate, administration, kinship, ancillary probate
Under New York law, when a person dies without a Will, sometimes first cousins CAN inherit, subject to certain special rules.
The most significant rule is that while first cousins can inherit, generally they cannot serve as fiduciary. This job goes to the Public Administrator if the County has one (5 boros, Nassau, Suffolk and…
When I refer to a “probate case”, I am talking about any situation where someone has died and now someone else is in my office.
In these situations there are 3 main areas I ask questions about. I can’t think of a situation where these questions would not be asked. Asking these questions helps me…
WHO SHOULD MAKE A WILL AND WHY DON’T THEY?
What happens when a person dies without a Will? Contrary to popular misconception, their assets do NOT “go to the State”. Their assets go to “family members” under the State’s laws of intestacy. So, the question any sane person with assets should be asking is “Who…
Sometimes people write down their wishes or give written directions regarding what they want done after they die. Sometimes they even call it a Will.
Will these be considered a Will? NO
Sometimes people who would benefit from such writings ask me, as a lawyer, to bring these writings to the Courts attention. They are…
If a fiduciary (in NY it’s an “Administrator” if no Will and “Executor” if there is) has to file an Accounting, where should they start? What should they do?
The Answer is to know what you should have been doing all along, and if you haven’t been, get caught up as much and as quickly…
When I start representing someone who is about to become a Fiduciary (Executor or Administrator) of an Estate, I always talk about “how an Estate finishes”. Like many things in life and business, if you know where you are trying to go it is much easier to make a good plan to get there.
Not…
Basic definition – A fiduciary is a person who holds a legal or ethical relationship of trust with one or more other parties (person or group of persons). Typically, a fiduciary prudently takes care of money or other asset for another person.
When doing Wills or handling Estates, we are often talking about fiduciaries. A…
Sometimes in Surrogate’s Court proceedings there are parties who have an interest in the proceedings but for some reason they cannot legally participate. This can occur in any type of proceeding: Probate, Administration and Accounting are the most common. A party is considered “interested” if the proceeding affects them in some way. In order to…
What happens if someone involved in an Estate is dead? These situations are very common. A few standard approaches apply….let’s look at a few situations:
The most important distinction to know is that PRE-deceased situations are very different than POST-deceased situations. When I refer to “PRE” and “POST” I am talking about when the person…
When I do Wills for clients, I always discuss the option of doing Living Wills and Health Care Proxies. I consider these so important, and so fundamental to proper practice, that I offer them at no additional charge. Here are the basics:
LIVING WILL – This is a person’s written declaration that if they are…