Brooklyn Probate Lawyer

Knowledgeable Brooklyn Probate Lawyer to Represent You

After your loved one dies, you may be filled with grief. Death can call up many difficult emotions. However, there are practical considerations that must be addressed as well. For instance, a survivor may need to locate important papers such as a last will and testament and file a probate petition. Probate is a process used to handle a decedent’s estate (assets and property) upon his or her death, when the decedent has left an estate worth more than $50,000 and a will. Estate administration will be undertaken when there is no valid will; rules of intestacy apply to distribution of assets and property if there is no valid will. Whether you are a survivor who has been named as an executor or a beneficiary or other interested party, you’ll be benefited by legal counsel. Call trustworthy Brooklyn probate lawyer Jules Haas for a free consultation about your matter. With over four decades of experience representing clients in all aspects of probate, he can help you with the duties of an executor, legal notices, claims against the estate, beneficiary rights, estate litigation, and transference of property to beneficiaries.  

Probate in Brooklyn

Probate must be initiated in the Surrogate’s Court where the decedent was living at the time of their death. If your loved one lived in Brooklyn at the time that they died, a probate petition must be filed in King’s County Surrogate’s Court. In the course of probate, the court will make sure a will is valid and oversee an executor’s actions in connection with the estate, such as the payment of the decedent’s debts, payment of taxes, and distribution of any assets that remain after debts and taxes are paid.

If your loved one has died, your first step would be to file a probate petition. As your attorney, I would help you gather supporting documents and make sure that the petition includes all required information, including contact information for the decedent’s next of kin so that they can be notified of the decedent’s death.

The court will need to validate the will. A will can fail for a number of different reasons. It may not be a valid will if formalities were not followed, and it was improperly executed by the decedent. For instance, if the decedent had impaired cognitive abilities due to dementia at the time he made the will, he may lack the necessary soundness of mind needed to create a valid will. Like, if a decedent made a will when she was seventeen, that will wouldn’t meet the requirement that she be at least 18 years old to create a valid will. Sometimes interested parties file will contests alleging that the will was invalid, and this can create a further complication in the probate process. Grounds for a will contest can include fraud or undue influence.

Steps of Probate in Brooklyn

The executor receives authority to handle the decedent’s estate from court-issued Letters Testamentary. As part of their job as executor, he or she must inventory the assets in the decedent’s estate and notify creditors and beneficiaries that the decedent has died to allow them the opportunity to make claims on the estate. Debts are settled out of the decedent’s assets and property. Distribution of the remaining estate property takes place after all requisite payments are made. (When there is no will and the decedent died “intestate,” the rules of intestacy will apply to the distribution of assets.)

There may be complications at any stage of probate; I represent clients on all sides of a dispute in connection with these complications. For instance, an estranged family member may come out of the woodwork to present another will to the court for consideration. The Surrogate’s Court may need to determine which will is valid. These can be contentious proceedings and it’s important to seek legal counsel to obtain a fair outcome. Estate settlement may also include kinship and accounting proceedings.  

Consult a Seasoned Brooklyn Attorney About Probate

Experienced Brooklyn probate lawyer Jules Haas represents clients not only in probate proceedings but also in estate administration, guardianship proceedings, estate planning, trusts, will contests, and Surrogate’s court cases. He provides personalized and attentive legal representation. Call him at (212) 355-2575 or contact him through our online form for a free consultation.