Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York

Probate of the will will require a lawyer.

Please accept my condolences on the loss of your mother.

There is no law or rule which prohibits an Executor named in a decedent's Will from completing the paperwork and submitting the Will to the Surrogate's Court (probate). I don't know your brother and so can't say whether he's up to the task. The forms are not very complex, but if you've never done it before it's easier said than done. That's why most people hire a lawyer. You may want to download the forms from the court website and take look for yourself and see if you can make heads or tails of what's being asked. If you send me an email to [email protected] I will send you a link to where you can download the forms.

Good luck.