Digital Assets: Why They Must Be Part of Your NYC Estate Plan (2025-2026 Guide)
We live our lives online. We bank on our phones, store our most precious family memories in the cloud, and increasingly, hold significant wealth in cryptocurrency and NFTs. Yet, as a New York estate planning attorney with many years of experience, I see a terrifying trend: while clients plan meticulously for their physical homes and bank accounts, their digital lives are left completely legally exposed.
I am Russel Morgan, and at Morgan Legal Group, we have handled over 1,000 successful cases. We have seen the devastating reality of the “digital lockout.” Families grieving a loss are suddenly faced with Apple, Google, or Coinbase refusing to grant access to a deceased loved one’s accounts. Photos are lost forever. Cryptocurrency wallets become inaccessible “digital dust.”
In 2025, a “standard” estate plan is no longer enough. You need a Digital Estate Plan. New York State law (specifically Article 13-A) has updated to address this, but few understand how to use it. This comprehensive guide will explain what digital assets are, why “password sharing” is not a legal strategy, and the specific legal tools you need to ensure your digital legacy survives you.
What Are “Digital Assets”? (It’s More Than Just Bitcoin)
When I ask clients about digital assets, they usually say, “I don’t own Bitcoin.” But digital assets are far broader than just cryptocurrency. In 2025, almost every New Yorker owns digital property.
We categorize these assets into three distinct tiers, each requiring a different legal strategy:
Tier 1: Assets with Monetary Value
These are assets that represent actual money or property.
- Cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Stablecoins.
- NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens): Digital art and collectibles.
- Online Payment Accounts: PayPal, Venmo, CashApp balances.
- Loyalty Programs: Airline miles and credit card points (which can often be worth thousands of dollars).
- Income-Generating Accounts: Monetized YouTube channels, blogs, or affiliate marketing accounts.
Tier 2: Assets with Sentimental Value
For many families, these are more valuable than money.
- Digital Photos and Videos: Images stored on iCloud, Google Photos, or Dropbox.
- Email Accounts: Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook (often the “key” to resetting other passwords).
- Social Media Profiles: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter).
- Digital Communications: Text messages and voicemails.
Imagine your children losing access to 20 years of family photos because they cannot unlock your iCloud account. This is a tragedy we see too often.
Tier 3: Electronic Access to Physical Assets
These are the keys to your “real” life.
- Online Banking Logins: Access to paperless bank statements.
- Utility Accounts: ConEd, internet, and phone bills.
- Password Managers: LastPass, 1Password (the “master key”).
The Legal Nightmare: Why You Can’t Just “Share Passwords”
Many people think, “I’ll just leave a list of passwords for my spouse.” While practical, this is legally fraught with peril. Accessing a deceased person’s account via their password can technically be a violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act—a federal crime. Furthermore, it violates the “Terms of Service” (TOS) of almost every platform.
More importantly, if two-factor authentication (2FA) is enabled (as it should be), a password is useless without the deceased’s phone, which might be locked. You need legal authority, not just a password.
New York Law: Article 13-A (RUDOFDA)
To solve this, New York adopted Article 13-A of the Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (based on the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act). This law governs how a fiduciary (your Executor or Trustee) can access your digital life.
The Hierarchy of Consent under Article 13-A:
- Tier 1: The Online Tool. If a platform offers a specific tool to name a legacy contact (e.g., Facebook’s “Legacy Contact” or Google’s “Inactive Account Manager”), and you use it, *that choice wins*. It overrides your Will.
- Tier 2: The Will or Trust. If you didn’t use an online tool, the platform looks to your Will or Trust. If your documents explicitly grant authority to access digital assets, the provider *must* comply (though they often fight it).
- Tier 3: The Terms of Service (TOS). If you did neither of the above, the platform’s generic Terms of Service apply. And almost every TOS says: “Your account terminates upon death.”
The Takeaway: If you do not have specific “digital asset” language in your Will or Trust, you are defaulting to Tier 3. You are letting Google and Apple decide what happens to your legacy. They will choose to delete it.
The “Digital Executioner”: Choosing the Right Person
In your estate plan, we appoint an Executor to handle your physical assets. But is that person tech-savvy enough to handle your digital ones?
- The Problem: Your brother might be great at selling your house, but if he doesn’t know what a “seed phrase” is, he could accidentally destroy your crypto wallet.
- The Solution: We can appoint a separate “Digital Executor” or give specific digital powers to a tech-savvy family member. Their sole job is to archive your photos, secure your crypto, and shut down your social media according to your wishes.
Protecting Cryptocurrency: The High-Stakes Challenge
Crypto is unique. There is no “customer service” for Bitcoin. If the private keys (the passcodes) are lost, the money is gone forever. Billions of dollars in crypto have been lost due to owners dying without sharing their keys.
The “Cold Storage” Trap
If you hold crypto on a “cold wallet” (like a Ledger or Trezor), it is not connected to the internet. It is a physical object. If your heirs don’t know where the device is, or the PIN code, or the 12-24 word recovery seed phrase, they cannot inherit it.
The Security vs. Access Paradox
You want your keys secure while you are alive, but accessible when you die.
DO NOT: Put your seed phrases or passwords *in* your Will. Your Will becomes a public record in probate court. Anyone could read it and steal your funds.
DO: Use a secure, offline method to store keys (like a safety deposit box or a specialized digital inheritance service) and use your Will/Trust to point the Digital Executor to that location.
The 2025 Action Plan: How to Secure Your Digital Estate
Based on our experience with over 1,000 families, here is the step-by-step process we use to build a digital fortress for our clients.
Step 1: The Digital Inventory
You cannot protect what you haven’t listed. We help clients create a comprehensive (but secure) inventory.
- Hardware: Phones, laptops, tablets (and their passcodes).
- Accounts: Email, social media, banking, utilities.
- Crypto: Wallets, exchanges, seed phrase locations.
- Subscriptions: Netflix, Spotify, software licenses (to stop the monthly drain).
Step 2: Legal Authorization (The “Magic Language”)
We draft your Power of Attorney and Revocable Trust to include specific, robust language referencing New York Article 13-A. This grants your agent the explicit right to access, manage, copy, and delete digital assets. Without this specific language, banks and tech companies will slam the door.
Step 3: The “Legacy Contact” Setup
We guide you through setting up the built-in tools:
- Apple Legacy Contact: Allows a chosen person to unlock your Apple ID after death.
- Google Inactive Account Manager: Can auto-send photos and emails to a spouse if you are inactive for 3 months.
- Facebook Legacy Contact: Allows someone to memorialize your page.
Step 4: The Crypto Access Plan
For clients with crypto, we create a tiered access plan. This often involves a multi-signature setup or a “dead man’s switch” protocol that ensures keys are only revealed upon verified proof of death.
Case Study: The Lost Bitcoin of Manhattan
We were contacted by the widow of a tech entrepreneur in Chelsea. He was an early adopter of Bitcoin and had mentioned he had “substantial” holdings. He died suddenly of a heart attack.
- The Reality: He had no Will. He had no inventory. His laptop was encrypted. His phone was locked.
- The Result: Despite our best efforts in Surrogate’s Court to get court orders, Apple could not unlock the device without erasing it. The crypto wallets were likely on the device. The family lost an estimated $2 million in assets. It effectively vanished.
The Fix: Had he named a Legacy Contact on Apple and created a digital inventory in a Trust, his wife would have inherited that wealth seamlessly.
Why You Need a Tech-Savvy Estate Attorney
Many general practitioners or older attorneys do not understand the difference between a “hot wallet” and a “cold wallet,” or why Article 13-A is critical. Using a “standard” Will template for a client with digital assets is malpractice in 2025.
At Morgan Legal Group, we are at the forefront of digital estate planning. We understand the technology, and we understand the law. We draft plans that satisfy the strict requirements of Silicon Valley tech giants and the New York courts.
Conclusion: Don’t Let Your Memories (or Money) Disappear
Your digital legacy is the story of your life. It is your photos, your letters, your work, and your wealth. Leaving it unprotected is a risk you cannot afford to take.
Do not wait until it is too late. Schedule a consultation with the expert team at Morgan Legal Group today. Let us ensure that your entire estate—physical and digital—is preserved for the people you love. You can read our Google reviews to see how we have helped others secure their future.
For more information on the technical side of digital inheritance, you can review this guide from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Digital Assets.
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