Q: Using CA Small Estate Affidavit to settle father's CA estate. How do we do NY Ancillary Probate for vacation home in NY?

A: I assume from your questions that there is a valid last will and testament and that your father did not have assets in California that necessitated its being probated. Whether the Will must be probated in NY depends on the nature of your father’s real estate ownership there. For example, if the real estate in New York is owned by your father in joint tenancy with any surviving joint tenant, probate would not be required. The transfer of title would have happened by operation of law immediately upon the your father’s death, and the property would not be a part of his estate and not subject to probate. On the other hand, if he was the sole owner of the real estate or if he was a co-tenant or tenant-in-common with others, probate would be required to transfer title to his interest.

[Since there was no previous probate in California (and I further assume not anywhere else), a New York probate would not be considered ancillary. There’s not a probate for it to be ancillary to. It would simply be an original proceeding.]

It is theoretically possible that a lay person could conduct a probate proceeding involving real estate successfully, but it is highly inadvisable. There are many arcane details, notice requirements that stem from US Constitutional law (case law) rather than state statutes, and so many pitfalls that even lawyers unaccustomed to probate will consult their probate colleagues when they can’t refer the case. A mistake might not be discovered for a few years and the difficulty and expense of unwinding it would greatly exceed the cost of having a lawyer do it right the first time. You can serve as executor or administrator though you reside in a distant state, but you will need to appoint a local agent, who can be the attorney.

Contact an experienced probate lawyer for specific answers to your questions. They can tell by looking at the deed to the NY real estate whether probate is needed there. Many offer free initial consultations. And feel free to get second opinions. Good luck.

A: Next of kin needs to petition for ancillary administration. Based on location of property, you may need a petition to sell it on top of petition for the ancillary letters. Can you do it yourself? Legally yes but if you do not understand the process, you are going to screw it up. You can repair your own car transmission too, but I use a mechanic.