I once worked with the family of a successful Manhattan restaurant owner. He was in his late 60s, vibrant, and still running the kitchen himself. One morning, he had a severe stroke. He survived but could no longer speak or manage his own affairs. His family was devastated, but their nightmare was just beginning. He had a will, but he never signed a durable power of attorney or a health care proxy. His wife and adult children couldn’t access his business accounts to make payroll, pay his personal bills, or make critical medical decisions for him. His most basic right—the right to control his own life and property—had vanished overnight.
They had to petition the court for guardianship, a public, expensive, and emotionally draining process that put their private life under a judicial microscope. This is what happens when we think of estate planning as something that only matters after we are gone. A proper plan protects your rights, your autonomy, and your family while you are very much alive.
The Right to Choose Who Inherits
The most fundamental right in estate planning is deciding who receives your property. For most people, a Last Will and Testament is the first and only instrument they consider. It is a powerful document, but also a limited one. A will directs assets, but it must first pass through Surrogate’s Court in a process known as probate. This means your family’s affairs, your assets, and your final wishes become a matter of public record.
This right is not absolute. New York law grants a surviving spouse a “right of election” under Estates, Powers and Trusts Law § 5-1.1-A. This statute allows a spouse to claim a share of the estate—roughly one-third—even if the will leaves them nothing. It is a public policy backstop to prevent the disinheritance of a spouse.
For my clients, exercising their right to choose often means moving beyond a simple will. By placing assets into a revocable or irrevocable trust, they exert far more control. A trust is a private agreement that avoids probate, shielding the family’s affairs from public view and potential contests. It allows for a seamless transition of stewardship, ensuring the people you choose receive their inheritance on your terms—without the delay and expense of court oversight.
The Right to Control Your Own Affairs
The story of the restaurant owner illustrates the most overlooked aspect of planning: incapacity. You have the right to decide who manages your finances and makes your medical decisions if you cannot. Failing to exercise that right while you are able means a court will exercise it for you.
Two documents are essential for protecting this right:
- A Durable Power of Attorney grants a person you trust—your agent—the legal authority to handle your financial and legal matters. Without it, bank accounts can be frozen and bills can go unpaid.
- A Health Care Proxy appoints a trusted agent to make medical decisions on your behalf, based on your wishes. This person can speak to doctors and access your medical records—authority that HIPAA laws would otherwise deny them.
These are not simple forms. They are powerful legal instruments that give another person immense authority over your life. We draft them with deliberate care, defining the scope of that power and building in contingencies. The alternative—a guardianship proceeding—is a public declaration of your incapacity and a complete surrender of your autonomy to the court system. This is the outcome we work to prevent.
The Right to Protect Your Legacy
Finally, you have the right to protect your legacy for the next generation. This goes beyond simply naming heirs. It is about being a prudent steward of what you have built. Handing a large inheritance outright to a young adult, or to an heir who struggles with financial discipline or is in a precarious marriage, can be a disservice.
This is where trust planning becomes an act of profound care. By leaving assets in a trust for your beneficiaries, you can protect them from potential creditors, future divorce proceedings, and their own poor judgment. You appoint a trustee—a person or institution with a strict fiduciary duty to follow your instructions—to manage and distribute the funds according to the rules you establish.
You can stagger distributions at certain ages. You can tie them to life milestones like graduating from college or starting a business. You can provide for a special needs child without jeopardizing their government benefits. This is not about controlling your family from the grave. It is about giving them the benefit of your wisdom and protecting them when you are no longer there to do it yourself. Stewardship.
A well-crafted estate plan is the ultimate expression of your personal rights. It is your instruction manual for the future, a final act of responsibility for the people you love and the assets you have worked a lifetime to acquire.
The first step is often to take stock of what you have and who you are responsible for. We invite you to schedule a confidential review of your existing documents—or lack thereof—to identify where your fundamental rights may be exposed.
