If you could no longer speak for yourself in a hospital room, who would the doctors turn to, and how would they know what you actually wanted? That single question is the reason two very different documents exist in New York law, and I find that most clients use the terms “health care proxy” and […]

Can you deposit your late mother's final paycheck into your own checking account just to keep things moving? It is a tempting shortcut, but the answer is no, and doing so can create real legal and financial headaches for the person administering the estate. When someone passes away in New York, their individual bank accounts […]

What happens to your bills, your bank accounts, and your medical care the day you can no longer make decisions for yourself? Most people spend years building a will, naming beneficiaries, and organizing their assets, yet never stop to ask this question. I have watched families with a beautifully drafted estate plan find themselves frozen […]

Some people who agree to serve as executor assume that once they start paying bills for the estate, that money is simply gone, absorbed as a favor to a loved one. Fortunately for them, New York law does not expect an executor to finance an estate out of personal savings. Reasonable, necessary expenses paid on […]

A safe deposit box is inaccessible to the deceased's family members. The bank won't grant access even when it contains the original will of the testator. This is a practical problem families face in New York every year. Having just a death certificate and the box key are insufficient for bank access. If you are […]

What happens when an executor simply goes quiet after being appointed? A will is admitted to probate, letters are issued, and then months pass with no word from the executor about what is happening to the estate. Beneficiaries start to wonder whether they are being ignored, misled, or worse. The good news is that New […]

Many people assume that once the Surrogate's Court issues letters testamentary or letters of administration, the executor or administrator is free to start writing checks to the beneficiaries right away. That assumption is one of the most common and sometimes costly because distributing assets too soon can leave a fiduciary personally on the hook for […]

Did you know that New York State is currently sitting on billions of dollars in unclaimed property — forgotten bank accounts, uncashed checks, old insurance payouts, security deposits, and stock dividends that were never delivered because the company simply lost track of the person? A surprising number of the estates I administer turn out to […]

Not every estate accounting in New York ends up in front of a judge. Most executors and administrators I work with close out an estate informally, presenting beneficiaries with a summary of assets, expenses, and distributions and asking them to sign off. But there is a more formal path, and every fiduciary should understand it […]

Many people assume a car simply passes to whoever is holding the keys once its owner has died. I have had to correct that assumption more than once, usually after a family member has already tried, and failed, to register a deceased parent's car in their own name at the DMV. New York does not […]