Estate Planning

In order for your property to pass along to your family and friends in accordance with your wishes, you must take action. If you die without a Will or Trust, the laws of intestacy will control the manner in which your estate is distributed when you die. Danziger Legal PLLC can assist you to put together the necessary estate planning documents that will inform your loved ones as to how to distribute your valuables and property; designate a trusted person to make health care decisions; inform your family and friends about your health care wishes; and designate a Power of Attorney in case you become unable to handle your own affairs when you are alive.

Many people put off the process of seeing a lawyer about a Last Will. However, a simple estate plan can put your mind at ease when it comes to your affairs. Our law firm can assist you with:

• Drafting and Executing your Last Will and Testament
• Health Care Proxy
• Drafting and Executing your Living Will
• Power of Attorney in the case of your incapacity and inability to handle your own affairs

This basic estate plan bundle is recommended even if you do not consider yourself wealthy.

Probate of Will and Administration of Estates

Our law firm also offers legal services to assist Executors and Administrators of Estates to fulfill his/her duties as the fiduciary of the Estate. Our attorneys have experience with the Surrogate’s Courts in the New York area and knowledge of the Petitions and Notices that must be filed with the Court and provided to other family members of the deceased.

When someone dies with a Will, the Will is probated in Surrogate’s Court – usually by the Executor named in the Will. The Executor then collects the assets of the Estate and distributes the property in accordance with the deceased’s Last Will and Testament.

When someone dies without a Will, an interested party of the Estate may file a Petition to Administer the Estate of the deceased. The Administrator of the Estate must distribute the Estate in the manner that is prescribed by the New York laws of intestacy when there is no Will.

Ancillary Probate

Ancillary Probate is necessary when an Estate is probated in a state outside of New York (usually where the deceased dies). However, there is some New York property, usually real estate, that still needs to be handled.  In this situation, an ancillary probate petition must usually be filed in Surrogate’s Court so the court can appoint an Administrator to distribute the New York property.  With real estate, this usually entails selling the house and distributing the net proceeds.