Legal blog & insights
Plain answers to complicated New York problems
Guides, checklists and FAQs on estate planning, elder law and Medicaid, probate, foreclosure and reverse mortgages, debt, real estate and business succession — written for the people who have to deal with them, not for other lawyers.
Estate Planning for Business Owners: What Happens If You Die or Become Incapacitated?
How Long Island business owners can keep a company running through death or incapacity, coordinating operating agreements, buy-sell terms and the personal estate plan.
Read the articleEstate Planning Before a Reverse Mortgage
A reverse mortgage reshapes an estate plan. The deed, trust, power of attorney and spouse questions to settle before closing, and what heirs face afterward.
Read the articleIs It Too Late for Medicaid Planning After a Nursing Home Admission?
An admission has already happened and the bills have started. What planning options may still exist under New York rules, what to avoid doing, and what to gather…
Read the articleWhat Happens to a Mortgage After the Borrower Dies?
The loan survives the borrower. What heirs need to know about keeping payments current, assuming or refinancing, due-on-sale protections, and reverse mortgage deadlines.
Read the articleReverse Mortgages and Estate Planning: Seven Problems to Solve Before Your Family Has To
Seven reverse mortgage issues to settle while the borrower is living: ownership, spouse status, incapacity, long-term care, heir expectations, estate liquidity and communication.
Read the article1031 Exchanges and Estate Planning: Questions to Coordinate Before Closing
What owners of Long Island investment property should coordinate between a 1031 exchange and their estate plan, including titling, trusts, boot and basis at death.
Read the articleTen Life Events That Should Trigger an Estate Plan Review
Estate plans go stale quietly. Ten events, from a refinance to a diagnosis to a move out of state, that should send documents and beneficiary forms back for…
Read the articleTitle and Deed Problems That Delay Long Island Closings
The title and deed defects that most often delay Suffolk and Nassau closings, why each one appears, and what it usually takes to clear the objection before the…
Read the articlePower-of-Attorney Abuse Discovered After Death: What Can the Estate Do?
Accounts drained in a parent's final years often surface only after death. Here is what an agent owed, what the estate can demand, and how New York courts…
Read the articleCommunity Medicaid vs. Nursing Home Medicaid in New York
Home care and nursing home coverage are two different Medicaid programs in New York. What separates them on transfer rules, income treatment, spousal protections and application process.
Read the articleSelling a Home With a Reverse Mortgage: A New York Seller’s Closing Checklist
A reverse mortgage rarely blocks a sale, but the payoff and title work must be sequenced carefully. A step-by-step checklist for New York sellers and fiduciaries.
Read the articleChapter 7 vs. Chapter 13: Which Bankruptcy Chapter Fits the Situation?
A practical comparison of Chapter 7 liquidation and Chapter 13 repayment for Long Island households, covering eligibility, exemptions, mortgage arrears and timing.
Read the articleEstate Planning for a Second Home in Florida or Another State
An out-of-state house is governed by that state's law. How ancillary probate, Florida homestead rules and domicile questions affect New York families with a second home.
Read the articleJudgments, Frozen Bank Accounts and Wage Garnishment in New York
How New York creditors enforce judgments through account restraints, income executions and liens, and what the exemption rules protect for wages and deposited benefits.
Read the articleNew York Estate Tax vs. Federal Estate Tax: Why Both Matter
New York and federal estate taxes run on separate rules. How the New York cliff works, why portability does not apply here, and what that means for planning.
Read the articleGrounds for Contesting a Will in New York
Disappointment is not a ground. Here are the recognized bases for a New York will contest, who may bring one, and how the Surrogate's Court process actually unfolds.
Read the articleWhat Happens to a Reverse Mortgage After Death? A Guide for Heirs, Executors and Trustees
After a reverse mortgage borrower dies, heirs face two jobs at once: establishing legal authority and answering the servicer. Here is how to run both in parallel.
Read the articleMAPT vs. Life Estate Deed: Which Gives a Family More Flexibility?
Two common ways to handle a New York home in long-term care planning, compared on control, ability to sell, tax basis, creditor exposure and what happens if plans…
Read the articleThe New York Foreclosure Settlement Conference: What to Expect
How mandatory settlement conferences work in New York foreclosure cases, what to bring, what the referee can and cannot do, and why an answer still has to be…
Read the articleEstate Planning for Blended Families and Second Marriages
Second marriages create competing obligations. How New York's elective share, beneficiary designations and joint ownership can quietly rewrite a blended family's plan.
Read the articleSelling an Inherited Home During Probate on Long Island
Selling an estate house involves more than a listing agreement. Here is what Long Island executors need in place before the sign goes up and before the closing.
Read the articleCan I Put My House in a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust?
Direct answers on transferring a Long Island home into a Medicaid asset protection trust, covering mortgages, STAR, insurance, selling later, and what actually changes for the homeowner.
Read the articleReverse Mortgage Foreclosure in New York: Why It Happens and What to Do When a Notice Arrives
Why reverse mortgage foreclosures start in New York, how to tell one notice from another, and the practical steps a borrower, heir or fiduciary should take first.
Read the articleWhy Signing a Trust Is Not Enough: The Importance of Trust Funding
A trust controls only what is actually transferred into it. This guide walks through funding a New York trust asset by asset, and the items that should stay…
Read the articleWhat Does an Executor Actually Have to Do?
Being named executor is a legal job with real duties and real exposure. Here is what New York actually requires, from letters testamentary through the final accounting.
Read the articleThe Five-Year Medicaid Lookback: A Long Island Family Planning Guide
What the five-year lookback actually reviews, which transfers are exempt, how a penalty period is computed and when it starts, and why the home is usually the hardest…
Read the articleBankruptcy vs. Debt Settlement: How to Compare Them Honestly
A fair side-by-side look at bankruptcy and debt settlement for New York consumers, covering lawsuits, taxes, cost, credit and which debts neither option resolves.
Read the articleWhat Happens After Someone Dies in New York? A First-30-Days Checklist
A step-by-step guide to the first month after a death in New York, covering the documents to collect, the accounts to secure, and the decisions that can wait.
Read the articleMedicaid Asset Protection Trusts in New York: What They Do and What They Do Not Do
A plain explanation of Medicaid asset protection trusts in New York: how irrevocability works, what the grantor keeps, what the trust cannot do, and why funding date drives…
Read the articleReverse Mortgages in New York: What Homeowners and Families Should Understand Before Signing
How reverse mortgages work in New York, the obligations that continue after closing, and the ownership, spouse and estate questions to settle before signing anything.
Read the articleWill vs. Revocable Living Trust: A New York Decision Guide
A side-by-side comparison of wills and revocable living trusts under New York law, covering probate, privacy, incapacity planning, cost and out-of-state property.
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How this library is maintained
Reviewed, not just published
Articles that depend on figures which change — Medicaid, estate tax, bankruptcy exemptions, mortgage programs — carry a last-reviewed date and are revised in place rather than republished as new posts.
Written for a decision
Each piece is meant to help you decide something: whether to call a lawyer, what to gather, what question to ask, what not to sign. Not to rank for a phrase.
No figures that go stale
Dollar thresholds, eligibility limits and exemption amounts are described by how they work rather than stated as numbers, because a wrong number on a website is worse than no number.
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The initial phone consultation is free and confidential. Have your documents to hand and we will tell you what your realistic options look like — including the option of doing nothing yet.