On July 4, 2022, Justice Masley of the New York County Commercial Division issued a decision in Rappoport v. Nye, 2022 NY Slip Op. 32091(U), holding that an estate beneficiary lacked standing to sue for conversion of property that took place before the testator died, explaining:
The motion to dismiss the amended complaint pursuant to CPLR 3211 (a) (2) is denied. To prevail on a CPLR 3211 (a) (3) motion to dismiss the plaintiff must show injury in fact, that is, an actual stake in the matter to be adjudicated, so as to ensure that the party has some concrete interest in prosecuting the action, and the court must have before it a justiciable controversy. A beneficiary, absent extraordinary circumstances, cannot act on behalf of an estate or exercise a fiduciary’s rights with respect to estate property. While plaintiff, as administrator of Seymour’s estate has the legal capacity to enforce Seymour’s claims on behalf of his estate, here, plaintiff’s claims arise from the alleged theft of the painting from Minnie during her lifetime. Thus, like the plaintiffs in Stallsworth, our plaintiff lacks standing to commence this action to recover an asset alleged to have been wrongfully taken from the Minnie estate prior to her death. As an individual beneficiary of Seymour’s estate, plaintiff has no independent
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).
right to maintain an independent cause of action for the recovery of Minnie’s property, as such a right belonged to the personal representative of Minnie’s estate.