Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

My aunt died five years ago (2007) and left no will. She has one surviving sibling and approximately fifteen neices and nephews. Her surviving sister recently sold her house, and has advised us (the nieces and nephews) that the proceeds of the sale will be divided equally among us. I (a niece) had one sibling (a brother) who died last year (2011). He was married but had no children. Is his wife (my sister-in-law) considered a distributee of my aunt's estate? Thank you for your help!


Asked on 1/27/12, 9:48 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Walter LeVine Walter D. LeVine, Esq.

Possibly: Since she died intestate (without a Will) the intestacy statute controls. Thus, each sibling or the children of a deceased sibling should share in the estate, per stirpes, not per capita (through family representation, not based upon number of family heirs). Your brother, since he survived your aunt, should get a share, and his share goes to his heirs - in this case his wife. This is a response to an Internet question and the response could differ if additional facts were presented. The reply is not intended to be legal advice or as creating an attorney-client relationship.

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Answered on 1/28/12, 10:24 am


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