Appellate Review in the First Quarter

April 05, 2021

As the year 2020 concluded, and the year 2021 began, the Appellate Division was hard at work rendering decisions addressed to issues affecting trusts and estates practice. This month’s column examines some of these opinions of interest.

Enforcement of Stipulation of Settlement Affirmed by Second Department.

In Matter of Roach, 2021 NY Slip Op 00434 (2d Dep’t), the Appellate Division, Second Department, affirmed an Order of the Surrogate’s Court, Suffolk County (Czygier, S.), granting the petitioner’s motion to enforce a stipulation of settlement.

The underlying proceeding before the court was a contested probate proceeding in which objections were filed to the appointment of the petitioner as executor of the decedent’s estate. More specifically, the objections alleged, inter alia, that the petitioner was unfit to serve as executor because he failed to execute a deed transferring the decedent’s home to the objectant. The objectant further alleged that the petitioner had caused the deed to be notarized without a signature, and failed to sign the deed on the decedent’s behalf using his durable power of attorney.

Ilene Sherwyn Cooper is a partner with Farrell Fritz, P.C. in Uniondale, where she concentrates in the area of trusts and estates.

Reprinted with permission from New York Law Journal, Monday, April 5, 2021, Vol 265 – No. 63.

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