Presumption of jurisdiction Where the jurisdiction of the court to make a decree or other determination is drawn in question collaterally... · as in force on May 31, 2026
§ 204. Presumption of jurisdiction
Where the jurisdiction of the court to make a decree or other determination is drawn in question collaterally, the jurisdiction is presumptively and in the absence of fraud or collusion, conclusively established by an allegation of the jurisdictional facts contained in a verified pleading. Jurisdiction of the parties is presumptively proved by a recital to that effect in the decree.
When Surrogate’s Court jurisdiction is attacked indirectly, jurisdictional facts alleged in a verified pleading establish jurisdiction presumptively and, absent fraud or collusion, conclusively. ★ A decree’s recital that the court had jurisdiction over the parties is presumptive proof of that fact.
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 1 — The Surrogate's Court in Plain English; Volume 2 — The Surrogate's Court Procedure Act; Volume 5 — Your Career: Surrogate's Court in Plain English.