Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: Length of holding wills

If the will was admitted to probate there should be a copy in the court file. You should check with the court in the county she resided in at the time of her death.

Re: Length of holding wills

It is unusual for an Estate proceeding to be open for a 20 year period, however, not impossible. If these $10,000 bequests were in fact provided for under her Will, then the Will would have been filed in the local Surrogate's Court for Probate. If this money was to pass to the grandchildren from non-probate assets, such as ITF bank accounts, life insurance, IRAs or other investment accounts, the records might be harder to come by after all these years.

Were you a minor 20 years ago (under 18 yrs)? If so, the Will may have provided that this bequest be held for you by the Executor or a Trustee until a specific time.

If you can not get anymore specific information from the 2 other grandchildren, I suggest that you retain an attorney to research the records at the Surrogate's Court. Please contact me directly at (716) 856-4022 for more information.

Re: Length of holding wills

If a Will was actually probated, and it appears it was, it is a public document and a copy can be obtained through the Surrogate's (Probate) Court in the County where your grandmother resided when she died. Numerous questions remain unanswered which are necessary to properly reply. For example, how old were you when she died. If you were a minor (then under 21), your funds may have been placed in a Court account to be held until you became an adult. It is also possible that one of your parents received the money if you were a minor, to be held as custodian for you until you reached age 21. If you contact the Probate Court, the Will can tell you who was appointed to represent the estate and who was the attorney. They may also have information as to what was the size of the estate, what it consisted of, and what happened to it. When an estate is closed in the Probate office it is usual that some form of accounting be submitted and that the estate's beneficiaries sign off with the Court. This is usually done by a beneficiary signing a Refunding Bond and Release. Copies of these documents would be on file also. I suggest you start by contacting the Probate Court to get a history of the estate, contact the Personal Representative and/or the attorney, if still around, to get more information. Last resort, hire a local attorney to assist you. Of course, you should also be aware that after 20 years, with no information or inquiry by you, information may be lost, people no longer around, etc., so you may have some problems.