Probate and Administration of Estates

CNY Law Firm serving Oneida, Rome, Syracuse, Utica, Chittenango, New Hartford, Whitesboro, Lowville and surrounding areas

If you need assistance with the probate of a Will or the administration of the estate of a person who dies without a Will, please contact Michel J. DeBottis to schedule an appointment.
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 Probate and Administration of Estates

Probate, a judicial proceeding in the Surrogate’s Court, is required to prove a Will’s validity and to oversee the process of identifying and gathering a decedent’s assets, outstanding bills, final expenses and administrative expenses. After the payment of outstanding bills and administrative expenses, specific bequests and the remainder of the estate are distributed in accordance with the testator’s wishes.
 
Administration of estates is necessary when a decedent did not prepare a Will or Trust. The Surrogate's Court oversees the process of identifying and gathering the decedent's assets, paying outstanding bills, final expenses and administrative expenses, and distribution of the remaining estate to the dededent's statutory distributees. The statutory distributees are established by New York law so the decedent's estate may be distributed to other people that the decendent would have intended had he or she prepared a will.