A person may prepare and execute a number of Last Wills during the course of a lifetime. It is not unusual to find that a testator signed a new Will only a few years after having created the earlier document. In these situations, the provisions in the Wills may be…
In a recent post in the New York Probate Lawyer Blog, we discussed the necessity of reviewing various documents that may have an impact on a person’s estate planning or the administration of his estate. Such papers would include divorce or matrimonial agreements and business papers. A recent Manhattan estate…
We know that when a person engages in the process of creating an estate plan, it is important to review all assets that may be part of the disposition framework. Assets that are owned in a person’s name are typically subject to the provisions of a Will. The testator creates…
Many decedents’ estates contain assets in the form of real estate. A decedent may have owned a home or rental property or a commercial building containing a business. Such items are typically the most valuable items among the decedents’ assets. If a decedent left a Last Will, such document may…
As a Trusts and Estates lawyer in New York, I receive many inquiries from individuals who are concerned about recovering and protecting their estate inheritances. The administration aspect of an estate generally can be in one of two forms. There is a probate estate where a decedent dies leaving a…
Estate planning in New York is important because it allows a person to create planning documents such as a Last Will and Living Trust. Advance directives in the form of a Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy can also be made. While these papers reflect a person’s intentions regarding the…
A person who is a New York domiciliary typically has his estate administrated in the County Surrogate’s Court where he maintained his home. Domicile is a person’s primary home as opposed to numerous residences which may be used. Whether a New York decedent has a probate estate or dies intestate…
The forum for proceedings regarding a decedent’s estate is typically the Surrogate’s Court. Probate proceedings and requests for intestate administration are filed in the Surrogate’s Court in the county where the decedent lived. For example, if the person lived in Manhattan, the estate proceedings would be filed in the New…
Estate planning and creating a Last Will and Testament is important. However, during the planning process, attention must be given to the eventual probating of the Will. When a Will is admitted to probate by the Surrogate’s Court, the effect is to validate the terms and provisions in the document. …
Like most things in life, estate planning in New York comes in all different shapes and sizes. Each person has their own unique situation regarding assets and desires concerning advance directives and post-death distributions. When reference is made to a so-called non-traditional family, the reality is that in today’s world,…