Welcome!
On behalf of the Trusts and Estates Law
Section of the New York State Bar Association and the members of its
Executive Committee, we welcome to our website all members and hope that
our new members will consider becoming actively involved. The benefits
of your membership and active participation with the Trusts and Estates
Law Section cannot be overstated. You will profit not just from the
educational component offered by the outstanding Continuing Legal
Education Department, but also from the congeniality and friendships
that endure throughout your career. For many new attorneys you will find
your participation in the section akin to having an informal
mentor.
The Trusts and Estates Law Section is
actively involved in all aspects of estate practice, by analyzing
topical issues, drafting new legislation and providing relevant
continuing legal education to practitioners. Our Section has been in the
forefront of proposing significant legislation which has enhanced our
practice, such as the enactment of the New York State SOP tax, the
creation of unified forms throughout the Surrogate’s Court system
referred to as “HOT DOCs” and ratification of the
attorney-client privilege between counsel and a fiduciary. It is
enormously rewarding to play a role in the development of the law which
governs our practice.
The Trusts and Estates Law Section is
divided into 16 committees. Each committee has a chair and one or
more vice-chairs all of whom are members of the Section’s
Executive Committee. The Executive Committee meets five times a
year. The work of the Section covers the breadth of the practice
through the participation of members on designated committees. At
the Executive Committee meetings, members consider and vote on
recommendations made by in a report or proposed legislation prepared by
a sub-committee which was responsible for studying the particular
issue. The participation of each member counts and through these
reports, articles and legislation we shape our practice.
A brief description of each Committee is
set forth on the Section’s web page which may be accessed on the
New York State Bar Association’s web site. Currently, each
Committee is actively engaged in several projects, a sampling
follows:
1) the Estate Planning Committee is
reviewing issues involving the expansion of the grounds for
disqualification of surviving spouses; 2) the Surrogate’s Court
Committee is addressing the allowance of guardianship investment in 529
College Savings Plans; 3) the Special Committee on E-Filing is working
on expanding electronic filings in all the Surrogate’s Courts and
4) the Estate and Trust Administration Committee is drafting legislation
to clarify New York’s trust decanting statute.
Each member of our section may
participate on a sub-committee in a variety of ways, from researching a
topic, drafting a report or legislation, or debating an issue during an
Executive Committee meeting. Every member is heard and his or her
opinion given weight.
Our Section is committed to finding a
way to help more members get started. For those members who have
not signed up for a committee, please do so by contacting the Chair of
the Committee or by filling out the attached form and emailing it to
Lisa J. Bataille at lbataille@nysba.org: Upon receipt
of the form, a member of the section will contact you.
Your membership will enable you to
participate on a committee, access invaluable information on the
Section’s web page where topical cases and new legislation are
posted, receive the Section’s Newsletter (published several times
a year) which contain articles on topical issues, and receive via email
alerts on breaking cases and legislation.
The benefits of membership are
invaluable. The relationships you will form will enrich your practice
and provide you with a network that cannot be duplicated.
Committee
Assignment Request
Symposium
at ColumbiaLaw School 9/23/2011 (Section Members Only)
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