Pursuant to the provisions of EPTL 5-1.1-A, every surviving spouse of a domiciliary decedent is entitled to a statutory right of election. While a surviving spouse may be disqualified from an elective share under any one of the circumstances enumerated in EPTL 5-1.2, the Surrogate’s and Appellate Courts have crafted a further ground for forfeiture when equity so requires. Such was the result in Matter of Berk, recently decided by the Surrogate’s Court, Kings County. Ilene Cooper discusses the decision in our latest entry.
Continue Reading Wrongdoer Deprived of Elective Share
January 2019
Testator Intent and In Terrorem Clauses
By Frank T. Santoro on
My colleagues have written on the enforceability of in terrorem clauses, and the courts continue to confront challenges in reconciling the testator’s intent to impose an in terrorem condition with the rights of beneficiaries to challenge the conduct of their fiduciary. The New York County Surrogate’s Court’s recent decision in Matter of Merenstein provides further…