Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: fathers will

A Will only operates on individually registered assets owned by the decedent. Anything that had joint names or a beneficiary designation, does not go to the recipient by the Will, but by the account registration. If the Deed had more than one name, it may not be part of the probate estate handled by the Surrogate. If the Deed named both your father and his wife, it may be that she gets the house. The language you cite is generic only. More information is needed to provide more than a general response. If you have a copy of the Deed, you can send it to me by mail or FAX and I will try to answer your question.