Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Re: successor executor

There is no requirement that an Executor take a fee, so it can be waived. However, if the estate is large enough that death taxes (federal and/or state), may be involved, it is worth comparing the tax brackets to see if the income taxes payable on the commissions (they are considered like wages to the Executor, but are not subject to SS taxes) might produce a better result than paying the death taxes. Since the commissions are a deduction in calculating death taxes, but need not be taken all at once, and can be spread out over several years, this might be a worthwhile calculation.