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Revisions to New York’s Estate Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL) enacted in 2008 were intended to correct inadvertent failures of a spouse to correct provisions to eliminate ex spouses as beneficiaries. The Matter of Suggs  involves just this type of situation. When the decedent and his spouse divorced, the court made provisions concerning the disposition…

Oneida County Surrogate Louis Vigliotti’s decision in the Estate of Patricia Powers    is one more example of what happens when you write on a will —-generally nothing. Here it appears that the testator wrote a note on the face of the Will that she was revoking it and writing a new will (which she apparently…

Nassau County Surrogate Edward McCarty III likes to begin his weekly Wednesday calendar call with a folksy chat to the usually packed courtroom. This week, the judge lamented the recent decision of the state to make new staff cuts of court personnel. The court is now losing its cashier as well as the clerk responsible…

Your lawblogger recently attended a seminar given by Evan Carroll, the author of  “Your Digital Afterlife”,  a book speaking to the growing issues that have arisen as our activities on line have continued to branch out and multiply. You may not have considered the nature and volume of your pictures stored on Facebook or your…

Every Spring, when the snowbirds have returned to New York, your lawblogger gets a rash of inquiries about trusts. Some folks are absolutely insistent but don’t really have a good explanation for this. I usually ask at this point which Florida clubhouse ran the program where they suddenly realized they must have a trust. An…

The Do It Yourself  legal industry is flourishing with claims that you do not need a lawyer to get your affairs in order with a low-cost DIY will. Just input your credit card information, download the easy to use form, fill in the blank spaces and seal it in an envelope in anticipation of Judgment Day. $29.95 will get you the security of knowing that you have made your Will and have not had to lay out huge sums of money for an attorney.Continue Reading Do Not Try This At Home –The Do It Yourself Will

One of the major features of the Surrogate’s Court is that it is a court of public record. Unfortunately, that can be one of its major drawbacks. Every document filed in every estate is available to anyone. If your grandfather (great grandfather) passed away here in the twenties, his Will together with lots of information about your family is there for all to see. Great if you are a history buff or looking for information about your ancestors but not so great if you would like to keep private stuff private. An example of this can be seen after the recent celebrity deaths of Philip Seymour Hoffman, Lou Reed and James Gandolfini. All of the minute details of their estate planning (or lack of same) are on public display.Continue Reading Sometimes A Trust Works Best

In her last public interview in 1994, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis stated that her most important accomplishment in life was to insure that her children loved each other. Your lawblogger has taken her words to heart over the years. As a litigator practicing in the field of contested matrimonials and contested estates, I can definitively state…