Senior Estate Attorney

Job Description

About the job:

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A distinguished plaintiff personal injury law firm is seeking a Senior Estate Attorney to join its collaborative team! This is a high impact, high visibility role that will oversee estate-related legal and administrative matters related to the firm’s personal injury, wrongful death, asbestos, and settlement cases, while also overseeing the operations of the Estates Department and supervising a team of paralegals.

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Office located in Midtown Manhattan

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Compensation: $150-180k base salary DOE + bonus & competitive benefits

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Responsibilities:

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Estate Assessment & Case Management

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• Manage estate-related matters following the death of clients, claimants, beneficiaries, or distributees to assess impact on pending cases.
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• Analyze estate requirements affecting litigation, settlements, substitutions, releases, wrongful death claims, and distributions.
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• Coordinate with families, fiduciaries, and interested parties to support estate administration and case progression.
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• Resolve estate-related legal, procedural, and administrative issues to advance litigation and settlement matters.
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• Maintain accurate estate documentation, action plans, and case updates in SmartAdvocate and other systems.
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• Collaborate with attorneys, leadership, and departments by providing updates, guidance, and recommendations on estate matters.
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New York Estate Proceedings

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• Draft, review, and oversee Surrogate's Court petitions and supporting documentation.
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• Attend Surrogate's Court appearances throughout New York State.
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• Monitor estate proceedings through the issuance of letters and entry of final decrees.
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Wrongful Death & Court Approval Proceedings

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• Determine whether court approval is required for settlements involving personal injury, survival, wrongful death, or mixed claims.
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• Prepare and review wrongful death compromise petitions.
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• Analyze proposed allocations between survival and wrongful death proceeds.
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• Coordinate with key stakeholders to obtain information required for court approval.
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• Monitor proceedings through completion and attend related court appearances.
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Multi-Jurisdictional Estate Matters

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• Evaluate estate matters involving decedents domiciled outside New York.
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• Conduct legal research on probate, estate administration, wrongful death, survival actions, fiduciary appointments, and jurisdiction-specific requirements.
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• Identify and manage relationships with outside estate counsel based on jurisdiction, expertise, responsiveness, cost, and case needs.
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• Serve as the primary point of contact between outside counsel, decedent families, and internal litigation teams.
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• Monitor referred matters, track progress, and follow up on outstanding requirements to support timely resolution.
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• Review estate counsel recommendations and strategies to ensure alignment with firm litigation and settlement objectives.
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Legal & Cross-Functional Collaboration

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• Serve as the firm's primary internal resource on estate-related legal issues affecting litigation, settlement authority, fiduciary capacity, court approval, and distributions.
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• Advise attorneys and case teams regarding estate requirements and procedural strategies.
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• Participate in conferences involving complex, high-priority, or delayed estate matters.
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• Coordinate estate-related activities with Litigation, Releases, Accounting, Liens, Medicare, structured settlement professionals, and firm leadership.
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Department Leadership & Staff Management

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• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the Estates Department.
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• Directly supervise, mentor, and provide support to Estates Department legal assistants and support personnel.
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• Establish assignments, priorities, deadlines, performance expectations, documentation standards, and escalation procedures.
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Qualifications:

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• Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school.
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• 4+ years’ experience as an Estate Attorney.
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• Licensed and in good standing to practice law in New York.
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• Experience handling Surrogate's Court proceedings, probate, estate administration, wrongful death matters, and fiduciary appointments.
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• Strong knowledge of personal injury and wrongful death litigation processes.
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• Demonstrated leadership and project management experience.
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• Exceptional legal drafting, organizational, analytical, and communication skills.
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• Ability to manage multiple complex matters simultaneously while maintaining accuracy and meeting deadlines.
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• Proficiency with SmartAdvocate and Microsoft Office applications preferred.
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