In this case, the Appellate Division considered whether assets acquired by a testator’s estate after the death of the testator should be distributed pursuant to the terms of a will or by the laws of intestate succession. The purpose of a creating a will is to enable the testator to…
Estate administration has two main goals. One goal is to distribute the assets of a decedent according to the terms of their will. If there is no will, assets are distributed according to the law of intestate succession. The other goal is to pay the decedent’s debts as well as…
Generally, when someone passes away, their estate must go through an administration process that starts with submitting the decedent’s will, if any, to the Surrogate’s Court, along what a petition for appointment of the administrator or executor. The law requires that interested parties must be notified that the estate is…
he purpose of the estate administration process is to settle the outstanding affairs of a decedent. This includes ensuring that the debts that the decent left behind and the expenses related to the administration of their estate are paid. Debts may include household bills, car loans, credit card bills, and…
The administrator of an estate is a fiduciary. As such, they are held to a high standard of conduct. They must perform their responsibilities with care and make the interests of the estate a top priority. They must be trustworthy and must not self-deal. If an administrator violates their duty…
A last will and testament allows a testator to specific who will receive their property upon death. It is an effective way to ensure you’re your property goes to who you want to receive it. However, many people do not leave wills, dying intestate. As result, New York’s law of…
In this case, the United States District Court, N.D. New York considered whether the plaintiff could proceed with a lawsuit against a decedent’s estate. The decedent had lived in New York State for many decades and had even served as the Superintendent of the Division of State Police. However, the…
In this case the Supreme Court considered whether a wife’s claim for spousal support survives her death and can be continued by her estate. It is not unusual for a divorce proceeding to stretch out over a number of years as the parties are not able to agree on various…
In this case the Appellant Division considered whether a claim against an estate was time barred. The decedent, J. Hollis, died in October 2015. She was survived by six children. The decedent’s will had a specific provision related what should be done if any of her children owed her money…
In this case the Surrogate’s Court considered whether the actions of a person who petitioned the court for letters of administration amounted to dishonesty, making him ineligible under Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act § 707. An executor or estate administrator is the person who is responsible for managing an estate after…