Staten Island (Richmond County) firm with eight offices across the New York City metro area, from Wall Street to Melville. Brings the probate proceeding in the Surrogate's Court of the decedent's own county - Manhattan, Westchester, Long Island, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn or Staten Island - to get the named executor appointed and secure Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, then marshals the estate assets and distributes them to the beneficiaries. Also handles will contests and estate litigation, elder law, Medicaid and nursing-home planning, guardianships and special-needs planning; initial consultations are free.
Westhampton Beach is in Suffolk County.
More Estate Law Firms in Suffolk County
New York elder law and estate planning firm working from twelve offices — Albany, five on Long Island, three in the Mid-Hudson Valley, New City and White Plains, and Staten Island. Guides executors and families through probate and estate administration, and handles trusts built to keep an estate out of Surrogate's Court, Medicaid asset protection, Medicaid applications and estate tax savings. Nine lawyers and seventeen paralegals and support staff, practicing since 1991; consultations are no-cost, virtual or in person, and the firm takes uncontested probate only.
Smithtown firm filing for Suffolk County families in the Suffolk County Surrogate's Court at Riverhead, with a second office covering Nassau's court in Mineola. Gets executors their letters testamentary so banks will release funds and real property can be sold, and handles administrations where there is no will as well as small estates.
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.
Smithtown (Suffolk County) firm with staffed offices in Melville and Garden City, representing Nassau and Suffolk families in probate and estate administration — inventorying assets, validating the will and distributing the estate. Also handles estate and probate litigation, elder law, Medicaid benefits and special needs planning. Its team includes attorney-CPAs and social workers.
Smithtown elder law firm helping seniors and their families across Suffolk and Nassau counties, including Hauppauge, Nesconset, Lake Grove and Centereach. Michael C. McCarthy concentrates in probate, estate administration and guardianship, and Michele D. Morley in trust administration and asset protection, alongside the firm's core work qualifying seniors and the disabled for Medicaid-paid care at home and in nursing homes.
Probate in Suffolk County
Probate Court Record
Suffolk County Surrogate's Court
Suffolk County · 10th Judicial District
Phone
Hours
Office
Website
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Self-help forms
How to file probate in Suffolk County →
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Do I need a lawyer for probate in Suffolk County? →Settling an estate in Suffolk County →
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.
Revocable Living Trust
Create a revocable living trust to avoid probate, protect privacy, and control asset distribution.
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.
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.
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.
Pour-Over Will
In New York, a pour-over will is signed before 2EPTL § 3-2.1Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses and moves anything left outside the trust into it through probate.
Transfer on Death Deed
In New York, a transfer on death deed is signed before a notaryN.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source and 2N.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, then recorded with the county before the owner's deathN.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source. New York does not recognize a Lady Bird deed.
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.
Trust or Will: Which Costs Less?
In New York, a will-based plan pays probate attorney fees of typically 2.5%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate; a funded revocable trust keeps those assets out of probate and off that fee.
Do I Need a Revocable Trust?
Probate in New York takes 7 months to 9 months for a simple estate and charges attorney fees of typically 2.5%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate; assets held in a revocable trust skip both.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in New York costs an estimated $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees run 2.5%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.
What Are the Estate Laws in My State?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in New York costs an estimated $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source and takes 7 months to 9 months for a simple estate, with attorney fees of typically 2.5%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%Modeled estimate under SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate. Estates under $50,000SCPA § 1301Verified Sep 8, 2026View source can use a small-estate procedure instead.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in New York: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 270 days22 NYCRR 207.20Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 7 monthsSCPA 1802, 1803, 1810, 1811; EPTL 11-1.5Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 7 months to 9 months.
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.
