Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: custody of children

You can make provisions in your will, but you cannot "sign over" custody of your children. Children are not possessions and cannot be transferred like real or personal property.

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Re: custody of children

On the death of the first to die of parents having joint custody, the survivor automatically gets custody, unless the children are old enough and want to contest it, or the survivor is incapacitated and cannot serve. You should always name someone in your Will, in case you are the survivor. You could name your parents as successor guardians, if you were to survive your spouse. A simple provision in your Will stating that you have joint cutody of your children with your husband and that, upon your death, should your husband not be alive, should he be incapacitated and cannot assume custody, or if the children contest his becomming their guardian and are successful in the contest, your parents, or the survivor of them, should be guardians, will do it. This covers physical custody only. You could, without restriction, name your parents as trustee for any money or physical possessions you want your children to get, and your husband has no rights to interfere with this. I suggest you use a good attorney familiar with Wills and these issues, to assist you. This is a response to an Internet question and the reply is not intended to be legal advice or to create an attorney-client relationship.