Estate Planning & Probate
What happens to what I own?
Whatever you decide, or whatever New York decides for you. Dying without a will hands the distribution of an estate to a statute that knows nothing about your family, and probate in Surrogate’s Court proceeds on its own timetable regardless of what anybody needs. Most of the difficulty that families encounter afterwards is created, or avoided, in advance.
What this covers
- Wills, and what happens without one
- Probate and estate administration in Surrogate’s Court
- Powers of attorney and health care proxies
- Trusts, and when one is and is not worth it
- Executor duties and the questions executors ask first
- Deed transfers and how real property passes
When it is worth a call
- You have no will, or the one you have predates a marriage, divorce, child or move
- A parent or spouse has died and you do not know what happens next
- You have been named executor and are not sure what that obliges you to do
- You own property in more than one state
Talk it through with Mitch
Bring the situation, not a diagnosis. A short conversation usually makes the next step obvious.