“Under the general rule, attorneys’ fees and disbursements are incidents of litigation and the prevailing party may not collect them from the loser unless an award is authorized by agreement between the parties or by statute or court rule” (A. G. Ship Maintenance Corp. v Lezak, 69 NY2d 1, 5 [1986]). This rule limits this […]
In a 3-2 split decision, the Appellate Division, Third Department reversed an order of the Surrogate’s Court of Albany County (Maney, S.), which had denied our motion seeking to disqualify the other side’s counsel. The appellate court agreed that opposing counsel was disqualified from representing the other side in the case based on opposing counsel’s […]
If you are considering objecting to a will, the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act provides you with the right to question the drafting attorney. But what should you ask? The questions for each specific case will vary. However, in most cases you should ask questions about the attorney’s background and qualifications, the attorney’s prior interactions […]
Generally, the fiduciary is entitled to recover the cost of attorney’s fees as a reasonable and necessary administration expense. However, SCPA 2110 also authorizes the court to award attorney’s fees for legal services rendered to a beneficiary. The court may direct payment directly from the estate generally or from certain funds in the hands of […]
A decedent may create a trust during his or her lifetime. What happens after the decedent dies? Does the Surrogate’s Court have jurisdiction to compel a trustee to account to a beneficiary or determine other matters relating to the trust? SCPA § 207 provides two separate grounds upon which the Surrogate’s Court may […]
There are several grounds to object to the estate paying the fiduciary’s legal fees. One of the most basic objections is to challenge the reasonableness and necessity of the legal services performed (see Matter of Bradley, 128 Misc 2d 240, 241 [Sur Ct, Nassau County 1985] [reducing the attorney’s fee because “some of the work […]