New York County (Manhattan) Surrogate’s Court

New York County Surrogate’s Court handles the estates, trusts, guardianships and adoptions of people who resided or owned property in Manhattan. If someone died a Manhattan resident — with or without a will — their estate proceeding starts here. It is one of the busiest Surrogate’s Courts in New York State, and because Manhattan estates often involve co-op apartments, business interests, and out-of-state or foreign heirs, its calendars include some of the most complex estate litigation in the country.

Address

New York County Surrogate’s Court
31 Chambers Street
New York, NY 10007

Main Phone: 646-386-5000

The court occupies the Surrogate’s Courthouse (also known as the Hall of Records), the landmark Beaux-Arts building at the corner of Chambers and Centre Streets, across from City Hall Park. Security screening is required to enter; plan for a line in the morning and after lunch.

Directions to New York County Surrogate’s Court

Subway Directions: 4, 5 or 6 trains to Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall; J or Z trains to Chambers Street (the station exits directly by the courthouse); R or W trains to City Hall; 2 or 3 trains to Park Place; A or C trains to Chambers Street.

Hours of Work

Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

(The filing windows and the record room stop taking requests before closing time, and clerks take lunch breaks. Do not plan to file anything at the end of the day, especially on a Friday.)

The court is closed on all state holidays.

Judges of New York County Surrogate’s Court

New York County is one of the few counties with two sitting Surrogates:

Hon. Rita Mella

Hon. Hilary Gingold

Cases are assigned between the two Surrogates, each of whom sits with law department staff who conference cases, supervise discovery in contested matters, and work through the calendars. Which Surrogate your case is before is shown on the court’s calendar and in the electronic file.

Departments of the New York County Surrogate’s Court

New York County Surrogate’s Court works through its departments, each with its own clerks and its own filing requirements:

Probate — handles estates where the decedent left a will. The proponent (usually the nominated executor) files the original will, a certified death certificate, the probate petition, and the accompanying affidavits, waivers and citations. Uncontested probate petitions are reviewed by the probate clerks, who issue “defect letters” if anything is missing — in Manhattan the clerks review petitions closely, and a clean, complete filing is the single biggest factor in how fast you get letters testamentary. If an interested party appears and objects, the matter moves to the contested track, beginning with SCPA 1404 examinations of the attesting witnesses and the attorney-draftsperson.

Administration — handles estates of Manhattan decedents who died without a will. The closest surviving relative under EPTL 4-1.1 has priority to be appointed administrator: first the spouse, then children, and so on. Where no eligible family member can serve, the estate may go to the Public Administrator of New York County, whose office is in the same building.

Small Estates (Voluntary Administration) — a simplified proceeding under SCPA Article 13 for estates with personal property under the statutory threshold. It is handled by affidavit rather than full letters, and the clerks assist unrepresented filers.

Guardianship — handles guardianships of the person and property, including Article 17-A guardianships for developmentally disabled adults. (Article 81 guardianships of incapacitated adults are generally heard in Supreme Court, New York County, but 17-A petitions belong here.)

Adoptions — handles private-placement, step-parent, family and international adoptions for Manhattan residents.

Accounting — handles the formal accountings of executors, administrators and trustees: voluntary accountings filed to close out an estate, and compelled accountings where a beneficiary forces the fiduciary to account through a miscellaneous proceeding.

Miscellaneous — the department for everything that is its own special proceeding: kinship proceedings for estates with distant relatives, proceedings to remove an executor, administrator or trustee, SCPA 2103 discovery and turnover proceedings to recover estate property, applications to open safe deposit boxes and sealed apartments, advice and direction, and proceedings to compel the production of a will.

Record Room — New York County’s estate records go back centuries and its record room is heavily used by genealogists and heir-search firms as well as lawyers. Wills that have been filed for safekeeping, probate files, and closed estate files can be searched on the terminals in the record room. Records are not available to the general public over the internet; you can also request copies by writing to the court with the decedent’s exact legal name and date of death and paying the statutory copy fees.

Filing Fees (SCPA 2402)

Filing fees in every New York Surrogate’s Court are set by statute and depend on the value of the estate or of the subject matter of the proceeding:

Certain applications carry separate flat fees under SCPA 2402 — for example, small estate (voluntary administration) filings, certificates of letters, and copy fees. The cashier accepts checks payable to “New York County Surrogate’s Court.”

E-Filing (NYSCEF)

New York County Surrogate’s Court participates in the New York State Courts Electronic Filing system (NYSCEF). Probate, administration and most other proceedings are filed electronically by represented parties; self-represented parties may still file on paper at the windows. Two practical notes: the original will must still be delivered to the court even in an e-filed probate case — e-filing the scan does not replace depositing the original — and defect letters and clerk correspondence arrive through the electronic file, so watch the NYSCEF notifications closely after filing.

Practical Tips for New York County Surrogate’s Court

Expect close scrutiny of filings. The Manhattan probate and administration clerks review petitions carefully. Missing waivers, inconsistent name spellings between the will and the death certificate, and incomplete family trees are the most common causes of defect letters and months of avoidable delay.

Kinship matters are common here. Manhattan has many decedents who die without close family, so kinship proceedings, Public Administrator estates, and genealogist testimony are a regular part of this court’s practice. If you are a distant relative claiming an estate, expect to prove the family tree formally, with documentary evidence and disinterested witnesses.

Co-op apartments complicate estates. A large share of Manhattan estates include co-op shares. Co-op boards routinely demand certificates of letters issued within the last six months, and transferring or selling the apartment requires the fiduciary to work with both the court and the co-op’s transfer agent. Plan the timing of certificates accordingly.

Get certified copies while you are there. Certificates of letters testamentary or of administration are needed by every bank, brokerage and transfer agent, and most institutions insist on a recent issue date. Order several at once from the cashier and keep track of their dates.

What Cases Belong in This Court

The Surrogate’s Court has jurisdiction over the affairs of decedents — probate of wills, administration of intestate estates, will contests, accountings, discovery and turnover of estate property, kinship, guardianships under Article 17-A, adoptions, and the appointment and supervision of fiduciaries. Disputes such as will contests, contested accountings, spousal right of election claims, and fiduciary removal proceedings are all litigated here. Venue belongs in New York County when the decedent was domiciled in Manhattan at death, or, for non-domiciliaries, when property of the estate is located here.

If you need an attorney for New York County Surrogate’s Court, we at the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin are here for you. Our office is in Midtown Manhattan, a short subway ride from the courthouse. You can call us at 212-233-1233 or send us an email at [email protected].