A special needs trust (also called a supplemental needs trust, or SNT) is a New York trust, authorized under EPTL 7-1.12, that holds assets for a person with a disability without disqualifying them from means-tested government benefits like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). In plain terms: it lets your family provide for a disabled child, spouse, sibling, or parent
A trustee is the person or institution legally responsible for holding, managing, and distributing the assets you place in a trust for the benefit of your family. Under New York law, a trustee must follow the trust document, invest prudently, treat beneficiaries fairly, and account for every dollar. In plain terms: a trustee steps into your shoes to protect your
For most New York families, the single biggest difference between a trust and a will comes down to one word: probate. A will must be filed and validated in the Surrogate’s Court after you die — a public, sometimes lengthy process — while a properly funded trust passes assets to your loved ones privately and without court supervision. Both documents
If your family is worried that a nursing home could one day consume the home and savings you spent a lifetime building, an irrevocable trust is one of the most powerful tools New York law gives you — but it only protects your loved ones if you plan ahead of the Medicaid 5-year look-back. In short: when you transfer assets
The right way to choose a trustee for your New York trust is to select a person or institution who is trustworthy, financially responsible, impartial, and willing to put your family’s interests above their own for as long as the trust lasts. That choice matters more than almost any other decision in your estate plan, because the trustee is the
Yes — a properly structured irrevocable trust can save New York estate tax, because assets you transfer into it generally leave your taxable estate. That is the single most important difference between an irrevocable trust and the more familiar revocable living trust: a revocable trust keeps everything in your estate (and saves no estate tax), while an irrevocable trust, once
How New York trusts work when beneficiaries are non-residents or non-citizens — costs, timelines, the QDOT fix, and when to call an immigration attorney.