Wills & Estates

Wills & Estates

What is a living will?

By curtis | Published: June 9, 2011
A living will is a document that specifies what type of medical treatments you would or would not want if you were unable to communicate. These treatments may include resuscitation, artificial nutrition and hydration and mechanical ventilation.  Living wills are usually too narrow to apply to many common medical situations. They often use language such as [...]
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What is a Health Care Proxy?

By curtis | Published: June 9, 2011
A health care proxy (also referred to as a durable power of attorney for health care) is a document that appoints someone to make medical decisions for you, if you are in a situation where you can’t make them yourself. It is extremely important to include specific instructions and guidance to your health care agent [...]
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The Last Will and Testament:

By curtis | Published: June 9, 2011
What Is A Will? A Will is a legal document that sets forth your wishes regarding the distribution of your property and the care of any minor children. Depending on the types of assets that are left behind and the wishes of the Testator, a Will can be fairly straight forward, or quite complicated. Either [...]
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What happens with my deceased loved one’s assets?

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
Jointly held assets in New York will pass automatically to the surviving joint owner. Other assets may pass to designated beneficiaries. In addition, if a person died with a valid will, his or her individually-owned property will be distributed according to the will. A person who died without a valid will is said to have [...]
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My loved one left a will, but I cannot find it?

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
Check with the attorney who prepared it. That attorney may have retained the original, or at least a copy. In certain limited cases, a copy can be probated if the original cannot be found.
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My loved one did not leave behind a will. What do I do?

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
If no will has been left behind, an administrator of the deceased’s estate will need to be appointed to disburse the assets of the estate and to pay any outstanding debts (such as taxes, bills, loans). The appointed administrator will be selected in the following order (assuming the potential administrator is competent and is at [...]
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My loved one left behind a will. What do I do?

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
The will should name an executor. The executor’s job is to collect the assets, pay the deceased’s debts, and distribute any remaining assets according to the provisions of the will. Once the executor has been determined, that person must then file a Petition for Probate and Letters Testamentary. The Petition for Probate and Letters Testamentary [...]
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The Estate: With a valid Will (Probate)- Without a Valid Will (Intestacy)

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
When someone dies and leaves a will the person is said to have died Testate. A Petition for Letters Testamentary is submitted to the Surrogate’s Court in the County in which the decedent was domiciled at the time of their death to have the Will admitted into probate. Probate is the legal proceeding used to [...]
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Power of Attorney

By curtis | Published: June 6, 2011
A Power of Attorney is your authorization, given to another person or organization, to act on your behalf while you’re unavailable or unable to do so. The person or organization you appoint is referred to as an “Attorney-in-Fact” or “Agent.”, Power of Attorney documents are commonly completed at the same time as the making of [...]
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