New York Probate and Estate Administration Lawyer Blog

Published on: June 25, 2012

Court Discusses Whether a No-Contest Clause Only Applies to Heirs

by Stephen Bilkis

A woman executed a will two weeks before she died in September 1992. She left an estate worth $2,000,000. Her will was offered for probate by the executors. During the proceedings, it was discovered that the woman filed with the Surrogate’s Court a prior will dated July 1992. The provisions of the 1992 did not provide for cash gifts to the attorney who drafted the will or to his wife who testified as to the due execution of the will, unlike the September 1992 will.

The charitable foundation contends that if the September 1992 will is found to have not been duly executed or if fraud or undue influence were brought to bear on the testator in the September 1992 will so as to also make bequests to the lawyer and his wife in her will, the residual estate which will be put in trust for the foundation would have been bigger.

The charitable foundation wishes to object to the probate of the September 1992 will but the will also contains a provision that if any of the beneficiaries of the will shall object to the probate of the will, the legacy made for them shall be revoked. A New York Probate Lawyer said this kind of provision is called an “in terrorem” or non-contest clause. It is meant to put the fear of disinheritance in the heart of those who were named beneficiaries in the will so that the estate will not be reduced by having to spend on legal costs.

Published on: June 24, 2012

Court Rules That Trust Acted as a Substitute Will

by Stephen Bilkis

A man created a living trust. A living trust is one where all the man’s assets are put in a trust with a bank or trust company and the income earned by his assets will be paid out to the man himself. The problem with this living trust the man created was that he bought the trust document in a pre-printed fill-in-the-blank form: he never went to a lawyer to have the lawyer create a trust document for him, tailor-cutting the provisions of the document so that it would fit his circumstances.

The trust he created came in a document that was sent to him in the three-ring-binder contained a Certificate of Trust, and Affidavit of Trust, a Living Will, a property power of attorney, a health care power of attorney and a copy of the man’s will which was stapled. The man can just cut out and paste those provisions that he didn’t like and keep the provisions that he did like and wished to retain. Glued to the ring binder is a sticker that showed the name and copyright of the lawyer who created the fill-in-the blank trust and will. The three-ring binder is part of an estate-planning product that also includes a seminar, a handbook and a computer software program which allows the person who purchased the portfolio to create a will and print it.

A New York Probate Lawyer said the living trust was created sometime on April 30, 1996. On the same date, the man also executed a will. The man’s will provided that all of the properties of his estate which were included in the living trust will be revoked upon his death and the entirety of his estate will pass on to his dear friend. This provision was later amended by the testator before his death on September 9, 1996. The amended provided that only 99.75 per cent of the entire estate under the living trust will be given to his dear friend and the remaining .25 will pass on to another friend.

Published on: June 23, 2012

Decedent’s Son Sues for Specific Performance

by Stephen Bilkis

A man and his male domestic life partner were co-owners of a cooperative apartment in Brooklyn, New York. They also co-owned a house in Southold, New York.

In his last will and testament, the man named his domestic life partner as his executor. He also left to him his share in the proprietary lease of the Brooklyn apartment and shares of stock. The man also gave cash gifts to his nephews amounting to $10,000 each.

The domestic life partner presented his the will for probate. The sons of the testator appeared during the probate proceedings but signed waivers signifying that they were waiving all objections they may have in the will. The will was admitted into probate in 2001 and letters testamentary were given to the testator’s domestic life partner.

Published on: June 22, 2012

Court Dicusses Rule of Perpetuities

by Stephen Bilkis

Issues of estate probate can be difficult to figure out. The wishes that a decedent places into their will should be considered as indelible in most cases. However, sometimes a will contains requirements that are not only difficult, but unreasonable for the decedent to place on their progeny. In one case that was heard in New York, Kings County Probate on December 23, 2008, conditions of this type were discussed.

In the incident case, the decedent left several pieces of property to different relatives. However, she placed numerous prerequisites on the acceptance of the property. She required that her family home be left to her niece and must not be sold. She stated that in that residence, the family was required to provide a room for an indigent friend of hers for free for the remainder of his life. She also left a property that was her family business to three members of her family. Two of these family members were people who lived in other countries.

A New York Probate Lawyer said the decedent’s niece filed a motion in probate that the requirements of the will were in violation of the rule against perpetuities. The rule against perpetuities was established to support the public policy of free transfer of property without restrictions on the living by the dead. It prevents an owner of property from putting limits on the power of future owners of the property. The rule against the restraint on alienation of property prevents an owner from creating requirements in their wills that block the recipient from selling or giving away the property as they see fit. In order to determine if the requirement of the will is reasonable, it must have limitations set forth in the document in reference to its duration, price and purpose.

Published on: June 21, 2012

Court Decides Non-Marital Child’s Status

by Stephen Bilkis

In a probate proceeding, two non-marital children have moved to have their status as children entitled to benefits under the after-born statute determined. In a prior decision, the court ruled that any question regarding a party’s status in a probate proceeding should be determined as a preliminary matter and stayed all other proceedings.

A New York Probate Lawyer said that rather than question any of the underlying facts, such as proof of paternity, the parties have consented to have the motion submitted assuming the truth of the non-marital children’s allegations for a determination of whether as a matter of law those allegations state a cause of action entitling the claimants to after-born status.

The father of the children died and was survived by eleven children; three from a first marriage, four from a second marriage and the four alleged non-marital children. The will offered for probate benefits only one child from the first marriage, the petitioner and named executor, who inherits the entire estate valued at several million dollars.

Published on: June 20, 2012

Probate Court Discusses Cy Pres Doctrine

by Stephen Bilkis

The Facts:

On 1 November 1995, a doctor (“the doctor”) died. On 8 July 1996, his will was admitted to probate (for estate administration or estate litigation). Under the will, the doctor bequeathed $3,500,000 to a hospital (“the Hospital”), to be held as the Endowment Fund in perpetuity, with the income only to be used for general purposes. This was in addition to the $1,000,000 that he and his wife gave the hospital for the same purpose in December of 1988. In addition, the doctor bequeathed 5% of his residuary estate (up to a maximum of $10 million) and one quarter of the balance of the residuary estate to the hospital. His will directed that these amounts be added to the Endowment Fund and administered under the conditions established under the will. The hospital received approximately $37,000,000 from the estate of the doctor dedicated to the Endowment Fund.

On 8 April 1998, the doctor’s wife (“the wife”) died. On 30 December 1998, her will was admitted to probate. Under the will, she bequeathed $4,000,000 to the same aforesaid hospital as the Endowment Fund, to be held either in perpetuity with the income to be used for general purposes, or in part or in whole for the construction or acquisition of a building to be called in their names. In addition, she left 20% of her residuary estate to the hospital, to be added to the Endowment Fund and administered under the conditions established under the will. A New York Probate Lawyer said the hospital received approximately $98,000,000 from the estate of the wife dedicated to the Endowment Fund.

Published on: June 19, 2012

Family Member Seeks to Invalidate Trust

by Stephen Bilkis

In situations of estate probate, there are often times when a person is appointed by the court to review the circumstances surrounding a will and to determine if the law has been followed in the distribution of the assets set forth in the document. This person is called the guardian ad litem. The guardian ad litem is an experienced attorney who’s responsibility is to prepare a detailed report where he lists his findings and based upon his findings, recommends the necessary action that should be taken to protect the interests of the person who has filed the complaint.

In the situation at hand, the decedent passed on May 9, 2007. There were four distributes named in the estate documentation. Two daughters were named, one son, and one granddaughter who is the child of a son who had passed prior to the death of the decedent. New York Probate Lawyer said one of the daughters filed a complaint with the probate court that the will naming only one of the son’s as the sole inheritor for the living trust of the decedent should be ruled invalid.

The reasons that were set forth to invalidate the living trust was that one of the daughters states that prior to the decedent’s death, the lone surviving son placed undue influence on the decedent up to and including fraud against the decedent while he was physically ill and depressed. The guardian ad litem in this case determined that the daughter might possibly have a case and determined that it was only proper for him to continue to represent the daughter in the future hearings in reference to the closing of the decedents affairs.

Published on: June 18, 2012

Court Discusses Non-marital Child Entitlement in Will Contest

by Stephen Bilkis

In a probate proceeding, two non-marital children have moved to have their status as children entitled to benefits under the after-born statute determined. In a prior decision, the court ruled that any question regarding a party’s status in a probate proceeding should be determined as a preliminary matter and stayed all other proceedings.

Rather than question any of the underlying facts, such as proof of paternity, the parties have consented to have the motion submitted assuming the truth of the non-marital children’s allegations for a determination of whether as a matter of law those allegations state a cause of action entitling the claimants to after-born status.

A New York Probate Lawyer said the father of the children died and was survived by eleven children; three from a first marriage, four from a second marriage and the four alleged non-marital children. The will offered for probate benefits only one child from the first marriage, the petitioner and named executor, who inherits the entire estate valued at several million dollars.

Published on: June 17, 2012

Beneficiary Contests Last Minute Change to Will

by Stephen Bilkis

A man died at age 84 and he is a resident of Westchester County. The man’s sole heir is his 15-year-old granddaughter who is the daughter of his estranged son who predeceased the man in 2004. A New York Probate Lawyer said the man was also survived by 10 nieces and nephews, including the complainant nephew and the opponent niece. The man had been married twice, with both marriages ending in divorce — the second of which was finalized shortly before the man’s death.

The following pertinent facts have been gleaned from transcripts of pre-trial testimony given by the nephew and the niece and from affidavits submitted on their behalf. Around October 2004, shortly after the man underwent quadruple by-pass surgery, the man’s second spouse, left the man and purportedly seized nearly $140,000.00 of assets held in a joint account in their names. Over the next two years, the man was beset with numerous physical ailments such as pneumonia, broken shoulder, diabetes and kidney-related problems, which caused him to be hospitalized and undergo physical rehabilitation on numerous occasions during that period.

Shortly after the second spouse left him, the man contacted the nephew, who was the man’s personal accountant since the late 1990’s, in order to gain his assistance in trying to recover from his second wife the proceeds from the joint account. At that time, the man informed his nephew that under his then-existing will (executed in or around 1993), he had bequeathed his entire estate to his second wife, and he wanted to change his testamentary plan to bequeath his estate to his nephew and/or his nephew’s son. Thereupon, the nephew who resides in Rockland County contacted her counsel of record in the instant proceeding — with whom petitioner has had a mutual professional relationship for client referrals since the late 1990’s.

Published on: June 16, 2012

Beneficiaries Bring Will Contest Action

by Stephen Bilkis

On this proceeding, the beneficiaries of a woman asked for an order to suspend the verdict of the court with regards the admission to probate to the woman’s will. A New York Probate Lawyer said they also asked to vacate the letters testamentary issued to the woman’s caregiver. They also requested to grant them the opportunity to examine the attesting witnesses to the will, directing that objections be filed within a reasonable amount of time after the completion of the examination of witnesses and staying the administrator of the will from disbursing the estate proceeds. The abovementioned motion’s is opposed by the woman’s caregiver.

The aforesaid woman died seven months after the execution of her will. Her husband predeceased her and she never had any children, biological or adopted. Apparently, the woman was survived by her six beneficiaries who reside in Australia. The woman’s caregiver originally filed a petition for the validation of the woman’s will and asserts that the woman had no successors. On the probate petition of the caregiver, she states that she was the woman’s live-in companion, the beneficiary of woman’s entire estate, as well as the designated administrator. Further, the only other individual named by the caregiver as a person interested with the woman’s assets is her sister, a resident of Ukraine. The caregiver’s sister was listed as the successor beneficiary of the woman’s entire assets and the nominated successor as the administrator. Additionally, the petition reveals the woman’s address as the caregiver’s address.

On the basis of the information provided by the caregiver, an initial letter was issued however the court directed the caregiver to submit a family tree. The caregiver consequently submitted an affidavit stating that she wasn’t aware of any person capable of giving a family tree. The caregiver further advised the court that the woman spoke occasionally with someone and was also visited by another man but she didn’t know whether the two persons were related to the woman. Consequently, the counsel for various members of the woman’s family advised the court by letter that the woman had performed a will in which members of the woman’s family and the family of her late husband was named as the beneficiaries and co-administrators. A copy of the will was provided to the court, but counsel advised the court that the original signed document had not been located. The counsel then stated that the family members intended to prove that the given will was obtained by the caregiver by means of fraud and undue influence. Moreover, they alleged that the woman was not of sound mind or memory, not capable of making a will and that the will was not properly completed. Afterwards, the copy of the letter was sent to the caregiver’s counsel. Brooklyn Probate Lawyers said the letter also accused the caregiver of committing perjury when she made sworn statements in her petition that the woman left no heirs. As a result, the counsel of the woman’s family demanded that the petition for probate be modified to reflect the woman’s beneficiaries.