
Probate Loans: A Caution for New York Beneficiaries
A family in Brooklyn inherits their parents’ brownstone—the home they grew up in. The will is clear, and they are the sole beneficiaries. But the
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A family in Brooklyn inherits their parents’ brownstone—the home they grew up in. The will is clear, and they are the sole beneficiaries. But the

A client from Queens recently called my office in a panic. Her father had just passed away, leaving behind a modest apartment, some savings, and

A client recently called me from California. Her uncle, a lifelong Manhattan resident, had just passed away, and she was named as the executor in

A client once sat in my office and told me, “I just don’t want them to fight when I’m gone.” He believed a simple will

When a Brooklyn family loses a parent who left only a will, their next nine months—often longer—belong to the Kings County Surrogate’s Court. Every asset,
When a severe stroke leaves a parent unresponsive in a Manhattan intensive care unit, the family’s grief is immediately compounded by an impossible question: how

A client once told me, “I’m not a Rockefeller, Russel. Why do I need an attorney for a simple will?” He was a successful business

A young couple recently sat at a long mahogany table in Brooklyn, sliding a certified bank check across the desk to close on their first

When a Brooklyn family loses a parent who relied on a generic, internet-printed document, the next eighteen months often belong to Surrogate’s Court. I see

At 2:00 a.m. in a Manhattan intensive care unit, a family’s dynamic is stripped down to its barest legal mechanics. An elderly parent has suffered

When the founder of a successful Manhattan design firm passed away unexpectedly last year, he left behind a grieving family, a thriving enterprise, and a

A client’s mother, living in her Upper East Side apartment for forty years, had a sudden fall. She was lucid, but her recovery would be

I once met with three siblings in my Manhattan office who had just spent a year fighting in Surrogate’s Court over their father’s business. He
When a Manhattan family returns to a deceased parent’s apartment after the funeral, they are usually greeted by a quiet, persistent reminder of the life

A client called me last week. Years ago, he had named his daughter as the executor of his will. She had since moved across the

A client once came to me after adding her son to the deed of her Brooklyn brownstone. She thought it was a simple way to

I once met with a couple from Brooklyn who had done what they thought was enough. They had downloaded a will template and named the

A client from Brooklyn sat in my office last week with what he thought was a simple plan. “I want to give the house to

A client came to my office with a common but difficult problem. Years ago, he and his wife signed their Brooklyn home over to their

A client came to my office a few years ago with a common problem. She was a widow in her late 70s, living in the
When a Brooklyn family discovers a signed quitclaim deed tucked inside their late father’s desk transferring the family home to his children, they usually assume

A client’s father passed away in his Brooklyn apartment. He was a widower, a retired city employee with a pension, a modest stock portfolio, and

An ambulance arrives at a Brooklyn brownstone. The family is distraught—their elderly father has collapsed. They show the paramedics a living will where their father

A family in Brooklyn gets the call no one is ever prepared for. Their mother has passed away. In the days that follow, between grief

Two founders build a promising tech startup in a Manhattan loft. They incorporate, draft an operating agreement, and secure their first round of funding. Then,

A client recently came to our Manhattan office with her late father’s will. She was named the executor and assumed her role was simple—gather his
Imagine an executor unlocking the door to a Manhattan co-op that has not been updated since 1982. The closets are bursting with vintage clothing, the

A client recently asked me why his mother’s seemingly simple estate in Queens was still tied up in Surrogate’s Court nine months after her passing.

I recently met with the children of a successful Manhattan business owner who had passed away. Their father had a will—a very clear one—that left

I often meet with families who have put off creating a trust because they are focused on the cost. They see it as an expense—another