With a specific statute mandating that pre-nuptial agreements must be acknowledged, and with a specific statutory form of acknowledgment, it is surprising that there has been so much litigation over missing or defective acknowledgements and whether they can be cured after the fact. The Second Department recently addressed this issue in Matter of Koegel. Jack Barnosky discusses the case in our latest entry.
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Contingency Fees – Size Matters
While the Court of Appeals last year upheld the validity of contingency fee agreements in estate matters, particularly in litigation, where it approved contingency fees of over forty million dollars when the actual time spent was a fraction of that value, a recent New York County Surrogate’s Court case, Estate of Fanny Goldfarb, confirms that the size of an estate can still be a major factor in determining the reasonableness of a contingent fee, even though the services rendered and the result achieved were exemplary. Jack Barnosky discusses the decision in our latest post.
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Reformation Proceeding – Brigati Irrevocable Insurance Trust
In Matter of Brigati, Surrogate Czygier of Suffolk County addressed an application to reform the decedent’s life insurance trust, which contained a significant amount of insurance. The instrument contained a number of terms which could cause inclusion in the decedent’s gross estate. Among other things, it provided that upon the death of the Grantor, the life insurance
Provision in Pre-Nuptial Agreement to Create Trust for Children is Enforceable
In a recent Westchester County decision, the court enforced the terms of a prenuptial agreement providing that the decedent was to leave trusts for the benefit of his children despite some unusual circumstances. Jack Barnosky discusses the case in our latest entry.
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“After Acknowledged Children” Denied Inheritance Rights
In Matter of Gilmore, the Second Department addressed the unusual situation of the inheritance rights of children who had been born prior to the execution of their father’s Will, but whose existence was unknown to their father until after his Will had been executed. Jack Barnosky discusses the case in our most recent entry.
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Trustee Permitted to Amend Accounting to Provide for Commissions
This week, Jack Barnosky discusses a recent case in which the language in a receipt and release agreement was essential to a decision permitting the amendment of an accounting.
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Tax Apportionment on Gift Tax Recapture
This week’s entry by Jack Barnosky discusses a recent decision from the Westchester County Surrogate’s Court.
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