This resource is published by Morgan Legal Group, a New York estate planning and probate practice led by attorney Russel Morgan. The firm focuses on New York’s EPTL and SCPA and serves clients across all five New York City boroughs — Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island — and their respective Surrogate’s Courts. Every guide on this site is written to reflect how New York law actually applies to city estates.
Who is Russel Morgan?
Russel Morgan is an attorney admitted to practice law in New York and the founder of Morgan Legal Group. His practice concentrates on estate planning, trusts, probate, and estate administration under New York’s Estate Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL) and Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act (SCPA). He has guided executors, administrators, and families through the realities that define New York City estates — co-op share transfers, condo deeds, the New York estate tax cliff, and the differences among the five borough courts.
Specific credentials such as bar admission date and law school are stated only where verifiable; clients can confirm current admission status through the New York attorney registration directory.
How the firm approaches NYC estates
Morgan Legal Group’s approach is built around a fact most generic estate content ignores: in New York City, the asset type drives the plan. A co-op (shares plus a proprietary lease) is treated as personal property and forces an executor to deal with a co-op board; a condo transfers by deed; a single-family house in Bayside or Staten Island is ordinary real property. The firm tailors wills, trusts, and probate strategy to what a client actually owns and to the borough whose Surrogate’s Court will ultimately handle the estate.
Why trust this information
- New York-specific focus. The content here cites the controlling statutes — EPTL 3-2.1, EPTL 4-1.1, SCPA 1402, SCPA 2307, and more — rather than vague generalities.
- Five-borough experience. The firm files and litigates across all five borough Surrogate’s Courts and understands their differing volumes and procedures.
- Practical, asset-aware planning. Guidance reflects co-op boards, the estate-tax cliff, and the absence of transfer-on-death deeds in New York — the things that actually shape city estates.
Service area
Morgan Legal Group serves individuals and families throughout New York City, including matters before the New York County (Manhattan), Kings County (Brooklyn), Queens County, Bronx County, and Richmond County (Staten Island) Surrogate’s Courts. Venue for any given estate follows the decedent’s borough of domicile under SCPA 205. See the Surrogate’s Court page and the complete NYC estate guide.
Editorial standard
The informational pages on this site are prepared and reviewed with reference to current New York statutes. Because figures such as estate-tax exemptions and court fees change periodically, year-dependent numbers are flagged for verification rather than stated as permanent. This content is general information, not legal advice for your specific situation.
Connect with Morgan Legal Group
To discuss your own estate plan or an estate you are administering, you can book a 30-minute consultation with Russel Morgan. Schedule a time or visit our contact page.