Surrogate Judge and Friends Holding Money From Cancer Victim in 19-Year Old Estate

Judge's Cronies Keep Money from Cancer Patient in Mother's 19-Year-Old Estate

Adrienne Marsh Lefkowitz found out she had cancer over two years ago. While most people know that stress is not good for cancer patients, perhaps someone needs to tell that to Westchester County Surrogate Judge Anthony A. Scarpino and The Bank of New York who continue to destroy the Bank’s cancer-victim opponent.

Lefkowitz, a retired New York State attorney is only too familiar with stress as a way of life, a horror involving her mother’s Westchester County estate that has been going on since Irene Marsh’s death 19 years ago. Westchester County Surrogate Court records indicate that Irene Marsh’s other distributees timely received their monies years ago. However, Ms. Lefkowitz and her daughter did not. (Incidentally, Ms. Lefkowitz’s father’s 21-year-old New York County estate is also still pending.)

For many years Ms. Lefkowitz’s estate distributions were often seized in secret by the estate executor, the Bank of New York. The Bank even refused to release her monies (almost $200,000.) after she made a special request related to her cancer diagnosis. And that medical request also didn’t matter much to Westchester County Surrogate Anthony A. Scarpino who not only denied the emergency medical request but failed to even mention the medical need in his decision. (Matter of Irene B. Marsh, New York Law Journal, October 20, 2006, page 28)

Though Lefkowitz provided evidence from her doctor concerning the cancer diagnosis, and her own affidavit seeking an “expedited resolution” to her request for the release of the undistributed funds withheld from her for years, the judge denied her request in a September 28, 2006 ruling. One attorney who reviewed the public file said, “It’s quite clear that Ms. Lefkowitz presented evidence to the court concerning her cancer diagnosis, and her urgent need for special care and treatment. I can’t understand or explain why the request was denied, and without the court even commenting on her need for monies for immediate cancer treatment.”

A review of the filed documents reveal that while rejecting the original grounds asserted by the bank-executor for withholding Lefkowitz’s distributions, the judge refused to release the funds to Lefkowitz because of the bank’s new argument of anticipated future litigation expenses, and a potential estate insolvency. The Bank of New York concealed from the court that it has refused to pay any more legal bills since January 2004.

“But only Lefkowitz, of the 5 beneficiaries was, in effect, being required to “post a bond” for future estate legal expenses,” says another legal expert after a review of the file. “The denial of monies to a cancer patient is reprehensible on its own, but given the bank’s admission to criminal activity, the Bank of New York is hardly a suitable fiduciary in any estate.” He added, “Under New York State Probate Laws, Article 7 of the SCPA, “dishonesty” is grounds for removal of The Bank of New York as it cuts directly to their ineligibility as a fiduciary. This estate should have been finalized years ago, and the denial of money for a cancer patient by the judge and the fiduciary are shocking- beyond words.” (Click her to see Related Story, "FBI Swamped with Bank of New York Violations")

Instead, the court has left The Bank of New York in place as the fiduciary of Lefkowitz’s mother’s estate, with the clear message that Lefkowitz would get no money for cancer treatment or care, or anything else, because of her plans to finally hold the bank accountable for its failings over the past 19 years, which include their dereliction in securing the Marsh family furnishings, art and jewelry. Lefkowitz is also opposing the huge attorney bills to the estate from McCarthy Fingar LLP. (The reader may recognize the McCarthy Fingar law firm from other stories on this forum, including the Thomas and Agnes Carvel estates) (click "JUDGE TO CANCER PATIENT..." icon on right to view the Court Decision and Lefkowitz's Affidavit),

The FBI has been investigating why over $300,000 of Lefkowitz’s daughter’s trust funds had been wrongfully retained in trust by the Bank of New York over 2 years after the termination date as set forth in the Marsh wills. The FBI probe follows the 2005 non-prosecution agreement where the Bank of New York agreed not to commit any more crimes, as reported in The New York Times on November 9, 2005. The bank’s non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorneys’ Eastern and Southern Districts of New York involved criminal activities which implicated the bank’s corporate counsel’s office and high-level Bank of New York executives. Ms. Lefkowitz declined to comment on this story.