🔑 Power of Sale vs. Specific Devise (Analyzing a 2008 NY Surrogate’s Court Decision)

Many New York wills include a broad "power of sale" clause, and it is easy to assume that means the executor can sell anything. But a specific devise changes the analysis: even where fiduciary authority is broad, specifically devised property is often treated as a carve-out that triggers consent or court-supervised sale rules.

This post discusses a 2008 New York Surrogate’s Court decision addressing a practical question that comes up early in administration: When real property is specifically devised, what must a fiduciary do before selling it—especially where another devisee will not consent and expenses are accruing?