Probate in Staten Island

Probate Court Record

Richmond County (Staten Island) Surrogate's Court

Richmond County (Staten Island) · 13th Judicial District

Hours

Monday-Friday 9:00 AM-5:00 PM

Office

18 Richmond Terrace, Room 201, Staten Island, NY 10301

Self-represented filing

Allowed

Self-help forms

How to file probate in Richmond County (Staten Island) →

Verified October 16, 2026 · Source

Do I need a lawyer for probate in Staten Island? →Settling an estate in Staten Island →

Guardianship Firms Serving Staten Island

Brooklyn practice on Columbia Street representing executors and administrators in the Kings, New York, Queens, Richmond and Bronx Surrogate's Courts. It collects waivers and consents from distributees, gets a citation issued when an heir will not sign, opens the estate account and EIN, reviews creditor claims and files the final accounting. The first one-hour consultation is free, online or in person.

Solo PracticeServes 5 countiesFree consultationVirtual consultationsEstate PlanningProbateElder LawTax PlanningGuardianship+4

Manhattan solo handling contested and uncontested Surrogate's Court matters across New York City and the surrounding counties: probate and intestate administration, kinship proceedings, will contests, fiduciary accountings, breach-of-fiduciary-duty claims, and estate taxes. Also drafts wills, trusts, and advance directives, and brings Article 81 guardianship proceedings.

Solo PracticeSince 1985Serves 8 countiesFree consultationEstate PlanningProbateProbate LitigationTrust LitigationTax PlanningGuardianship

Sheepshead Bay (Brooklyn / Kings County) practice running since 1998, representing families and executors in the Brooklyn Surrogate's Court and across the five boroughs, with additional offices in Manhattan and East Quogue. Handles probate and estate administration, drafts wills and revocable and irrevocable trusts, and concentrates in Medicaid asset protection, Article 81 guardianship, and elder law. Inna Fershteyn is fluent in Russian and Ukrainian.

Solo PracticeSince 1998Serves 7 countiesEstate PlanningProbateElder LawTax PlanningGuardianship+3

Flushing (Queens County) firm representing families in probate and estate administration through the New York City Surrogate's Courts, with offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Also handles estate litigation, asset collection and marshaling, wills and trusts, powers of attorney and health-care proxies, and Medicaid and special-needs planning. Initial phone consultations are free.

Serves 7 countiesFree consultationVirtual consultationsEstate PlanningProbateProbate LitigationElder LawGuardianship+2

Lower Manhattan practice on Broad Street representing beneficiaries, administrators, executors, heirs, and trustees in Surrogate's Court probate proceedings and will contests across the five boroughs, Long Island, and Westchester. Handles estate administration, ancillary probate for foreign and out-of-state decedents, SCPA 1404 examinations, contested accountings, guardianship, and federal and New York estate tax returns.

Solo PracticeSince 2015Serves 8 countiesFree consultationEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate LitigationTrust Litigation+4

Five-attorney estate practice at 40 Wall Street, appearing regularly in the New York County Surrogate's Court. Gets fiduciaries appointed — letters testamentary, letters of administration c.t.a. and d.b.n. — then handles what goes wrong afterwards: contested accountings, discovery and turnover proceedings to recover estate assets, fiduciary removal, and kinship hearings proving a right to inherit. Also runs contested Article 81 guardianships.

Serves 6 countiesFree consultationEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate LitigationTrust Litigation+4

All 15 New York guardianship firms serving Staten Island →

Forms for Planning and Settling an Estate in New York

Free New York forms to plan or settle an estate: a will, trust, powers of attorney, TOD deed and the probate forms. Prepare each form for New York.

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Last Will and Testament

In New York, a will is signed before 2EPTL § 3-2.1Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyEPTL § 3-2.1Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.

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Healthcare Power of Attorney

New York requires 2NY PHL § 2981(5)(d)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses for a healthcare power of attorney; notarization is not requiredNY PHL § 2981(5)(d)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source.

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Financial Power of Attorney

New York treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultNY GOL §§ 5-1501, 5-1501A, 5-1501B, 5-1502A through 5-1502N, 5-1504, 5-1512, 5-1513Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed before 2NY GOL §§ 5-1501, 5-1501A, 5-1501B, 5-1502A through 5-1502N, 5-1504, 5-1512, 5-1513Verified Sep 18, 2026View source witnesses and a notary.

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Revocable Living Trust

Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.

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Tools for Planning and Settling an Estate in New York

Free calculators and checklists to plan or settle an estate in New York: will and trust costs, probate, executor pay and taxes. Run each tool for New York.

How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?

In New York, four years at a public university cost about $101,592NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is 8% above the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; the state levies an estate taxN.Y. Tax Law §§ 951–971Verified Sep 15, 2026View source above $7,350,000N.Y. Tax Law §§ 951–971Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.

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What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?

An attorney-prepared revocable trust in New York runs $4,250Estimate: 10 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $6,375Estimate: 15 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $1,344Estimate: 3 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,688Estimate: 6 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.

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Who Inherits Without a Will?

Without a will in New York, a surviving spouse takes the first $50,000 plus half of the restEPTL § 4-1.1Verified Oct 21, 2026View source when a child or other descendant survives, and descendants divide what passes to them per capita at each generationEPTL § 4-1.1; EPTL § 1-2.16Verified Oct 21, 2026View source.

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