How are digital assets handled in a New York estate?

What the Law Says

New York adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA) to clarify how executors, administrators, and trustees may access digital assets after a person’s death or incapacity.

Digital assets include emails, social media accounts, cloud storage files, cryptocurrency wallets, and other electronic records in which a person has a right or interest.

Under RUFADAA, a user’s direction via an 'online tool' (e.g., Facebook Legacy Contact or Google Inactive Account Manager) overrides any contrary instruction in a will or trust.

If no online tool is used, the user’s will, trust, or power of attorney may grant access — but only if it specifically refers to digital assets or online accounts.

Absent specific consent, custodians (like Apple, Google, or Meta) may disclose only a catalog of digital assets (not content) unless the user expressly consented to full disclosure in a will or online tool.

Statutory Text

Unless otherwise ordered by the court, a custodian shall disclose to the executor or administrator of a deceased user’s estate the catalogue of electronic communications sent or received by the deceased user.

— Estates, Powers and Trusts Law § 13-A-3.1 — Disclosure of catalogue of electronic communications

Statutory Text

A user may use an online tool to direct the custodian to disclose or not to disclose some or all of the user’s digital assets to a specified person or to delete some or all of the user’s digital assets.

— Estates, Powers and Trusts Law § 13-A-2 — Online tool

Statutory Text

If a user has not used an online tool to give direction, the user may allow or prohibit disclosure… in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record.

— Estates, Powers and Trusts Law § 13-A-3 — Terms-of-service agreement

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