Planning ahead gives your loved ones clear direction when they need it most. Estate planning lets you decide who will inherit your assets, who can manage your finances, and who can make medical decisions if you cannot. If you do not make these decisions, New York law makes some of them for you. For example, if you die without a will and leave a spouse and children, your spouse receives $50,000 plus half of the rest, and your children share the remainder, whether or not that fits your family.
At Sverdlov Law, PLLC, our New York City estate planning attorneys help individuals and families put those decisions into writing through wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and health care directives. Whether you are raising children, preparing for retirement, or updating an older plan, we help you identify gaps and choose protections suited to your circumstances. Our goal is to preserve both your family’s assets and your family’s harmony. A plan that saves taxes but leaves your children in conflict has not done its job.
Not sure where to start? A free intro call helps you see what your family needs first. Contact Our Office – Sverdlov Law PLLC
Why Choose Sverdlov Law, PLLC for Estate Planning?
Our firm offers:
- Financial insight: Katya Sverdlov brings 12 years in financial services and the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) designation.That background helps us explain how investments, retirement accounts, and real estate fit into your plan.
- Estate administration experience: Our work with estates and trusts informs how we prepare your planning documents. We have seen where plans break down after a death, and we draft to prevent those problems.
- Connected legal services: We address related elder law, Medicaid planning, and business succession concerns.
- Special needs planning: We help families plan for loved ones with disabilities while considering public benefit eligibility.
- Personal attention: We listen to your priorities and explain how your choices could affect your family. We tell you plainly when a document or strategy is more than you need.
What Documents Should Your New York Estate Plan Include?
Most estate plans begin with a will and documents addressing financial and medical decision-making. Whether you also need a trust depends on your goals, assets, and family circumstances.
We help you consider:
- A will: Directs the distribution of property passing through your estate and allows you to nominate an executor and a guardian for minor children.New York Will requirements are strict: the will generally must be signed at the end in front of two witnesses who also sign. A will that misses a formality may not be admitted to probate.
- A trust: Provides asset management and instructions about when beneficiaries receive their inheritance. Helps to avoid probate, protect assets, reduce litigation.
- A durable power of attorney: Authorizes someone to handle specified financial matters, including during incapacity. New York uses a statutory short form with its own signing requirements, and your financial agent cannot make medical decisions for you.
- A health care proxy: Names an agent to make medical decisions when you lack decision-making capacity.
- A living will: Records your treatment preferences. New York has no separate living will statute, so we prepare it to work alongside your health care proxy.
We help you choose documents that work together and understand the authority you are giving others. We also encourage you to tell the people you name about their roles, so no one is surprised when the time comes.
Can Estate Planning Help Your Family Avoid Probate in New York?
Yes, in many cases. A properly funded living trust, certain ownership arrangements, and valid beneficiary designations can allow assets to pass outside probate.
Probate can take months or longer, involve legal and court costs, and make your will part of the public record. Accounts held solely in your name may be inaccessible until an executor is appointed and the bank’s requirements are met. That can leave your family struggling to cover a mortgage or other immediate expenses.
A will generally must be admitted by New York’s Surrogate’s Court before your executor receives authority to administer your estate. Assets properly held in a living trust and accounts with valid beneficiary designations generally pass outside that process.
We review asset ownership and beneficiary designations to help reduce probate delays and plan for your family’s immediate financial needs. As NYC living trust lawyers, we also help you fund the trust, because a trust that holds nothing will not avoid probate in New York.
Want to know which of your assets would go through probate today? Start with a free intro call. Contact Our Office – Sverdlov Law PLLC
How Can You Provide for Children and Other Loved Ones?
Your plan can address who would raise your children and how their inheritance would be managed. Those responsibilities do not have to belong to the same person. Choosing thoughtfully, and explaining your reasons, can prevent tension between relatives later.
Your will can nominate a guardian, although the court makes the final appointment. Consider the person’s values, health, and ability to take on a growing household. Naming alternate guardians helps account for changing circumstances. A Will only speaks at death. New York also allows parents to designate a standby guardian, in a signed and witnessed document, who can step in if a parent becomes incapacitated, so naming a guardian for minor children in New York can cover more than one scenario.
A separate trustee can manage inherited assets and authorize payments for education, housing, or other needs. You can arrange distributions over time rather than leave a young beneficiary a substantial inheritance outright.
If a loved one receives means-tested public benefits, we can discuss whether a special needs trust would help support them while preserving eligibility.
Should Your Estate Plan Address New York Estate Taxes and the New York Estate Tax Cliff?
Your estate may face New York estate tax even if no federal estate tax is due. For deaths in 2026, New York’s basic exclusion is $7.35 million. Real estate, investments, and other assets can bring your estate closer to that threshold than you expect.The exclusion is adjusted each year, so we review it with you as it changes.
New York also has two rules that deserve attention:
- An estate tax “cliff”: If your New York taxable estate exceeds 105% of the exclusion, you lose the exclusion benefit, and tax is calculated on the entire taxable estate.For 2026 deaths, that point is $7,717,500.
- No portability between spouses: A surviving spouse cannot claim a deceased spouse’s unused New York exclusion. Married couples may need additional planning to make use of both exclusions.
- Gifts near death: Taxable gifts made within three years before death are generally added back when calculating New York estate tax, so last-minute gifts often do not reduce the tax.
We review potential tax exposure and discuss strategies suited to your circumstances, including trust planning and charitable gifts when appropriate.
When Should You Create or Update Your Estate Plan?
Planning before an illness or emergency gives you time to consider your choices.You must have the required mental capacity when you sign, so a sudden illness can close the door on planning. Review your existing documents after:
- A marriage or divorce
- The birth or adoption of a child
- A significant change in your finances or business ownership
- The death or incapacity of someone named in your plan
- A move to another state
Also review your beneficiary designations. They generally control who receives those accounts regardless of what your will says, and an outdated form can undo careful planning
To get started, gather existing estate documents, a general asset list, and beneficiary information. We discuss your priorities, recommend an approach, and prepare documents for review. Depending on your plan, completing the process may also require trust funding or updated account designations. We tell you exactly what remains to be done after signing and follow up until it is complete.
Put Your Estate Planning Decisions Into Action
At Sverdlov Law, PLLC, we help you decide who will manage your affairs, how your assets will pass, and what protections your loved ones may need. Contact our Lower Manhattan office to schedule an estate planning consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if I die without a Will in New York?
New York’s intestacy law decides who inherits. If you leave a spouse and children, your spouse receives $50,000 plus half of the remaining estate, and your children share the rest. If you leave children but no spouse, your children inherit everything. You also lose the chance to choose your executor or nominate a guardian for your children.
Do I need a trust, or is a Will enough?
It depends on your goals. A living trust can help your family avoid probate in New York, keep your plan private, and manage an inheritance for children over time. Some families do not need one. We explain the tradeoffs and recommend a trust only when it serves your goals.
Can I name someone to care for my children if I become ill, not just if I die?
Yes. New York allows a parent to designate a standby guardian whose authority can begin upon the parent’s incapacity or death. The designation must be signed in front of two witnesses, and the standby guardian must then ask the court to confirm the appointment within a set period.
Does New York accept handwritten wills?
Rarely. New York recognizes an unwitnessed handwritten will only if it was made by a member of the armed forces during a war or armed conflict, a person serving with those forces, or a mariner at sea, and even then only for a limited time. For everyone else, a will must meet New York’s formal signing and witness requirements to be valid. .
What happens to real estate I own outside New York?
Real estate outside New York may require a separate court proceeding called ancillary probate in the state where the property is located. Transferring that property timely into a properly funded Trust can help avoid this additional process.
Can my estate plan address digital assets?
Yes. New York law lets you decide who may access your online accounts after your death or incapacity. Some providers offer their own settings, such as a legacy contact, and those settings can override instructions in your will. We coordinate your documents with each provider’s tools so your wishes are consistent.