Sometimes a person in New York dies without much to their name. If so, their estate upon their death may qualify for the Voluntary Administration process, which is a quicker and simpler alternative to formal probate proceedings. What is Voluntary Administration? In...
You may have very personal reasons why you want to leave nothing to one of your adult children in your will, but a disinherited child can be angry if they are surprised to learn, upon the reading of your will, that they will receive less than their siblings or nothing...
When someone executes a will, they do so because they want to ensure that their assets are distributed according to their wishes. For many such people, one concern they have is that their will may be challenged in court when it reaches probate, resulting in...
Through a will, trust, and other estate documents, you help assure that your assets are properly allocated, and your family’s needs are addressed death or incapacity. But it is also important to assure the well-being of our pets who are such an important and beloved...
People often name close family members to be the executors of their estates. These are people they trust and love and not necessarily someone who has personal knowledge of the probate process. Executors have a very important responsibility for settling the estate in...
When you're putting together an estate plan, you're juggling a lot of pieces. You have to consider the needs and wishes of your loved ones, and put those up against the realities of your finances. You have to plan for events that will happen well into the future, and...
Many estate plans require the person who owns the assets of the estate to place significant trust in another person to take possession of the assets and to manage them in a manner that does not violate the trustee’s duty of care to the person creating the trust...
Your family may enjoy the vacation home over in Cape Cod, or perhaps even a beachfront property down in the Carolinas. Whether it is a place to vacation in the summer or to escape the New York winters, it may be a haven where your family gathers together. However,...
In New York, when someone writes a will, it details how they want their property to be distributed and to whom at the time it is written. However, with life changes will likely come a desire to update a will. There could be a divorce, a new marriage, children,...
Many New Yorkers use trusts as vital parts of their estate plan. And of course, each trust requires the appointment of a trustee. What happens if the person who makes the trust (the “settlor”) makes a vital mistake in managing the trust? Can the trustee be removed?...