A family in Brooklyn receives the invoice from the funeral home. It’s for $18,000. They know their father had more than that in his checking account, but when his son—the one named as executor in the will—goes to the bank with the death certificate, he’s turned away. The account is frozen.
This isn’t the bank being difficult. The bank is following the law. From the moment of death, that checking account is no longer your father’s personal property. It is now the property of his estate. The bank has a legal duty to safeguard those funds until a court-appointed fiduciary—an executor or administrator—presents the proper legal authority to take control.
The Legal Authority to Settle Final Expenses
In my practice, this is one of the first and most stressful challenges a grieving family faces. The final arrangements must be made and bills come due quickly, but the funds to pay them are locked behind a legal process. So, how does a family gain access?
The simplest path relies on planning done years before death. If the bank account was held jointly with a right of survivorship, the surviving owner automatically absorbs the account. It never becomes part of the estate and is not subject to the probate process. Similarly, if the account had a “Payable-on-Death” (POD) or “In Trust For” (ITF) designation, the named beneficiary can claim the funds directly from the bank with a death certificate. I often recommend these tools to clients as a deliberate way to provide immediate liquidity for a surviving spouse or child, bypassing the delays of Surrogate’s Court.
When these designations are not in place, the path to accessing funds runs directly through the court. The person named as executor in the will must file a probate petition. If there is no will, a close relative must petition to be appointed as the estate administrator. Only when the court is satisfied—and issues what are called Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration—does that individual have the legal standing to manage the deceased’s accounts.
What if You Pay Out-of-Pocket?
Of course, funeral homes and cemeteries don’t wait for the court system. In the vast majority of cases I see, a family member pays for the funeral expenses from their own savings. This is a common and practical step, and the law protects the person who does it.
New York law gives funeral expenses top priority over nearly all other debts of an estate. Under the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act—specifically SCPA §1811(1)—reasonable funeral costs are the very first bill to be paid from estate assets. This means that before any credit card companies, medical providers, or even general creditors get paid, the estate must reimburse the person who covered the funeral. The executor has a fiduciary duty to see this happens.
It’s an act of stewardship. By paying these initial costs, a family member steps in to fulfill a final obligation, and the law ensures they are made whole from the estate they helped to protect.
The Standard of “Reasonable” Expenses
The law uses the word “reasonable” for a reason. What constitutes a reasonable funeral expense is judged against the decedent’s station in life and the overall value of the estate. A $50,000 funeral for an estate worth several million dollars would likely be deemed reasonable. That same expense for an estate with only $60,000 in assets would almost certainly be challenged by beneficiaries or other creditors, and the court would likely agree.
An executor must act prudently. Their duty is to honor the decedent’s wishes while also preserving the assets of the estate for all rightful heirs and creditors. This requires careful judgment, especially in the emotional days following a loss.
If you have been named an executor or are the closest relative of someone who has passed, the first step is to get a clear picture of the estate’s assets and liabilities. If you need clarity on this process, a consultation is the correct next step. We can review the estate and outline the path for settling its immediate obligations.
