On November 25, 2019, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a new bill into law increasing the maximum value allowable in a Small Estate proceeding from $30,000 to $50,000. Under the previous law, if a person’s estate contained personal property of $30,000 or less, the executor or administrator of that estate had the ability to begin a Small Estate proceeding. The advantage of these types of proceedings includes a smaller filing fee and a faster turnaround time to complete the proceeding from a tradition probate filing.
This new legislation updates the threshold to $50,000, making this proceeding more accessible and available to more estates than before. As with the previous law, this figure does not include assets with a predetermined beneficiary (non-probate asset), nor does it include items listed under Section 5-3.1(a) of the Estates Powers and Trust Law (EPTL).
If you have questions regarding whether or not this new legislation impacts you, or you have questions regarding estate administration, please contact one of our attorneys at Melvin & Melvin via phone via (315) 422-1311 or email via contactus@melvinlaw.com.
For more information contact a Melvin & Melvin, Attorney
