Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: Is the reading of a mothers will ''Law''

The reading of the Will is seen mostly in movies and novels. Generally each interested person is furnished a copy of the Will.

If your brother seeks to be appointed as the Executor by the Surrogate he will be required to furnish a copy to each sibling along with either a request that service of Citation be waived or a Citation. A Citation is the term used in the Surrogate's Court for a summons, the service of which brings a party under the jurisdiction of the Court.

There is no time requireent for the probate (filing) of the Will, but if there is an undue delay any interested party can ask the Surrogate to command the person who has custody of the Will to probate it promptly.

Re: Is the reading of a mothers will ''Law''

There is no formal requirement for the reading of a Will. This is usually done only in the movies and in novels. The executor is required to provide a copy of the Will, when probated, to all persons named therein, which is usually done by mail. Also, since a probated Will is a public document, you can view it at the Surrogate's Court, in their records room. The executor must provide each named party with an accounting of the estate - but keep in mind that assets may have different categories: joint assets (those with multiple owners) are part of a potential taxable estate, but are not part of the probate estate (those assets covered by the Will). Non-probate assets pass to the beneficiary by operation of law or specific account designation. These include joint assets, insurance policies with specifically named beneficiairies, pensions and IRA accounts with named beneficiairies, etc. Be sure the executor accounts for all assets, not just the probate assets.

Re: Is the reading of a mothers will ''Law''

There is no requirement for a will reading unless the will says there should be one.

There is no time limit to file a will but there are ways to get

an executor to file a will faster.

If it has been filed you should receive a copy as you would be an interested party.

You can also go to the courthouse to see if the will has been filed. If it has you are entitled to see it as it is public record.

Bunji Fromartz

718 855 7675