Jennifer F. Hillman is a Partner in Rivkin Radler’s Personal, Family & Business Planning Practice Group as a fiduciary, trust and estate litigator. Her practice includes all manner of contested and uncontested Surrogate’s Court proceedings and include accounting proceedings, probate contests, discovery proceedings, and commercial litigation related to estates. These proceedings review the actions of trustees, executors and other fiduciaries, protect and recover estate and trust assets and other matters related to trusts and estates.

Jennifer is a former chair of the New York State Bar Association’s Trusts and Estates Section, a position she earned after many years serving on the executive committee as chair of the Estate Litigation Committee and co-chair of the Government Relations and Legislation Committee. Through each of these roles, Jennifer actively assisted the Section in promoting new legislation, and several of her own proposals have been signed into law. In 2022, she was selected to be a Fellow of The New York Bar Foundation.

Jennifer currently serves on the New York City Bar Association’s Trusts, Estates & Surrogate’s Courts Committee for a three-year term ending in 2025. She was elected by her peers as a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC). In 2022, she was selected to be a Fellow of The New York Bar Foundation and appointed to the Committee on Membership. She is a member of the Estate Planning Council of Nassau County and the Nassau County Bar Association, where she served as co-chair of the Surrogates Court Committee.

A frequent speaker, Jennifer has lectured on probate and trust issues to the New York State Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association, the Suffolk County Bar Association, the Judicial Institute and other organizations. She has cowritten many articles for the New York Law Journal and is a contributor to the LexisNexis Estate Practice and Elder Law Community on a variety of issues related to estate litigation (see list of titles, below).

Jennifer has received an AV Preeminent^® ranking by Martindale-Hubbell, given to attorneys who are ranked by their peers at the highest level of professional excellence for their legal expertise, communication skills, and ethical standards.

In 2023, she was recognized by JD Supra’s Readers’ Choice Awards for the topic of wealth management.

Jennifer was named a Rising Star in the Metro New York area from 2014 to 2018 and a Metro New York Area Super Lawyer in Estate & Trust Litigation from 2019 to 2024. She was named to the Best Lawyers in America® list for Litigation-Trusts and Estates, Trusts and Estates for 2025.

Articles

“SSHHH! Should Trustees Speak Up About Quiet Trusts?”, New York Law Journal, January 31, 2022
“Now, More Than Ever, New York Needs a Directed Trust Statute”, New York Law Journal, April 30, 2021
“Implications of DNA Registries For Trust and Estate Practitioners”, New York Law Journal, February 28, 2020
“Anatomy of a Probate Contest Part 3: SCPA 1404 Examinations”, New York Law Journal, July 3, 2019
“Presumption of Death: What Happens When an Individual Vanishes From Society?”, New York Law Journal, September 6, 2018
“Considerations When the Proposed Article 17 A Guardian May Not Be Suitable”, New York Law Journal, September 11, 2017
“Practical Concerns When Settling a Wrongful Death Action”, New York Law Journal, May 5, 2017
“Fiduciaries and Settlements: SCPA 2102 Is an Important, Under-Utilized Tool”, New York Law Journal, January 6, 2017
“Mortmain Statutes and Restrictions On Testamentary Gifts to Charities”, New York Law Journal, July 11, 2016
“Recent Tax Court Ruling on Crummey Trusts”, New York Law Journal, January 11, 2016
“Using a Power of Attorney To Conduct Litigation Strategy”, New York Law Journal, September 14, 2015
“Clarifying When and Whether Divorce Revokes Bequests”, New York Law Journal, July 13, 2015
“Third-Party Miscellaneous Proceedings in Surrogate’s Court”, New York Law Journal, April 22, 2015
“The Right of Election and Tax Apportionment”, New York Law Journal, November 10, 2014
“Interplay of Health Care Proxy and Living Will”, New York Law Journal, July 14, 2014
“Extending EPTL 3-3.5 Safe Harbor Provisions to Inter Vivos Trusts”, New York Law Journal, March 11, 2013
“The Evolution of Prudence in Trustee Investing”, New York Law Journal, January 9, 2013
“New York Needs a Directed Trust Statute”, New York Law Journal, November 20, 2012
“Till Death Do Us Part: Post-Death Annulment of Marriage and the Right of Election”
“Article 17-A Proceedings Remain an Important Tool”
“Privity and the Role of Limited Letters in Legal Malpractice Actions”, New York Law Journal, November 22, 2010
“Applying Equitable Estoppel to Deathbed Marriages”, New York Law Journal, May 13, 2010
“The Evolution of Trust Reformation and Modification Under New York Law”, New York Law Journal, July 9, 2012
“Self-Dealing Fiduciaries: What Is the Appropriate Standard?”, New York Law Journal, November 15, 2011
“Subject Matter Jurisdiction In the Surrogate’s Court”, New York Law Journal, March 14, 2011
“Does New York Need a Trust Code?”, New York Law Journal, January 31, 2011

Blogs

“When To Object To Attorney-Fiduciary Commissions”
“Tangible Personal Property: What Does it Encompass?”
“Inheritance Rights of Posthumously Conceived Children in New York State”
“New York Decisions Utilize Equitable Estoppel to Prevent Abusers of the Elderly From Profiting From Their Wrongs”
“Searching For Frank: What Is A Diligent Search For Heirs?”
“Making Your Mark: Using a Fingerprint When a Testator Cannot Sign the Will”
“Attorney – Executor Beware: Strict Compliance with SCPA 2307-a Is Needed for Full Commissions”
“Potential Pitfalls of an Out of State Executor: Keep New York Estate Assets in New York”
“Preventive Medicine For the Health of Your Estate”
“Digging A Little Deeper: Less Obvious Attesting Witness Beneficiaries Find Their Bequest Void Under EPTL 3-3.2”
“To the Victor Goes The Spoils: A Review of the Pro Tanto Rule”
“New York Appellate Court Broadens the Powers of an Attorney-in-Fact”
“Effective Transfers to a Trust ”
“The Often Misunderstood Rule Against Perpetuities”
“Dishonesty as a Grounds for Ineligibility as a Fiduciary”
“When A Trust Is No Longer Economical”