When a child is born to parents who were not married at the time (and, depending on the county, not subsequently married), they are considered a non-marital child. Inheriting from the estate of a non-marital father can be a complicated matter. Marital children benefit from the marital presumption of legitimacy – the idea that […]

When a person dies in New York State without a Last Will and Testament, New York’s intestacy law, found in EPTL 4-1.1, governs who is entitled to receive the decedent’s property (otherwise known as their estate).  The New York Estates Powers and Trust law provides an order of priority in which the decedent’s relatives may […]

Real property is a common estate asset. If you are the next of kin or proposed executor or administrator of a loved one’s estate, you may be charged with selling a parcel of real property. This article will give an overview of the process and propose a couple of ways to expedite it in order […]

Living trusts are a much talked about topic in the field of estate planning, and for good reason. You may have heard financial planners or attorneys mention these trusts as a “must have” item in your planning portfolio but may be confused as to what a living trust really is, what it accomplishes, and most […]

When a person passes away leaving assets in their own name, their heirs generally have to go through probate or an administration proceeding to transfer those assets. Sometimes, however, the value of the assets is so small that it is not cost effective to bring these proceedings. In those cases, New York allows the heirs […]

When serving as the Administrator or Executor of a loved one’s estate, the Surrogate’s Court may require you to obtain something called an bond. An Administrator Bond or Executor Bond is similar to an insurance policy for the creditor and beneficiaries of the estate that will protect them in the event that the Executor or […]

If you are in the position of taking care of the affairs of a recently deceased relative, you may find that their house or apartment has been sealed by the police. This is commonly done when the police are notified of a person's death and the home or apartment has no other occupants. This is […]

When a person passes away and leaves behind assets in his or her name, his or her heirs must begin the estate administration (if there is no will) or probate process (if there was a will) to handle the distribution of the property.  During the administration or probate process, a decedent’s property is collected, debts […]

You go to an estate planning attorney to draw up your will and know exactly who gets what when you pass away.  Then the lawyer asks you who you want to be the executor of your will, and you ask the most logical of questions: “What is an Executor?”, or, perhaps, you have been named […]

What is the Executor of an Estate? An executor is a person specified in a will to handle administrative tasks on behalf of the estate.  The primary responsibilities of an executor include collecting assets, paying valid debts, paying taxes, and accounting to the beneficiaries and distributing the net assets to the beneficiaries.  An executor can […]