SCPA § 206

Non-domiciliaries; jurisdiction and venue 1 · as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 206. Non-domiciliaries; jurisdiction and venue

1. The surrogate's court of any county has jurisdiction over the estate of any non-domiciliary decedent who leaves property in the state, or a cause of action for wrongful death against a domiciliary of the state. The proper venue for proceedings relating to such estates is the county (a) where the non-domiciliary decedent left property, or (b) where personal property belonging to the non-domiciliary decedent has since his death, disappearance or internment come into and remains unadministered, or (c) of the domicile of the person against whom a non-domiciliary left a cause of action for wrongful death.

2. Where venue may lie in more than one county under the provisions of subdivision one, the court where a proceeding is first commenced with proper venue shall retain jurisdiction, and matters relating to the estate of the non-domiciliary decedent pending in the surrogate's courts of other counties shall be transferred to it.

3. A surrogate shall transfer any proceeding to the surrogate's court of the proper county either on his own motion or on the motion of any party.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/SCP/206

In plain English

A non-New York domiciliary’s estate may come within Surrogate’s Court jurisdiction through New York property or a qualifying wrongful-death claim.

(1) Any county’s court has jurisdiction if the decedent left property in New York or a wrongful-death claim against a New York domiciliary; venue lies where the property is or later remains unadministered, or where that defendant is domiciled. ★
(2) If several counties qualify, the first properly filed court keeps jurisdiction, and other Surrogate’s Court matters must be transferred there.
(3) A surrogate must transfer a proceeding to the proper county, on the court’s own motion or a party’s motion.

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.

In print

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.