missingtheobvious is correct. In New York, the supreme court is the court of general jurisdiction that hears cases. It is the opposite of most states and the opposite of the federal court system. I have a law degree but don't practice law and am not well versed in estate law. THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. However, as far as I know, she can't come after you personally. She can only make a claim on the estate. I believe if the estate is probated already and sufficient time has passed without her making a claim on the estate, she is out of luck. See e.g. http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/nycode/SCP/18 § 1802. Effect of failure to present claim If any claim is not presented on or before the day fixed in the notice published pursuant to the preceding section or if no notice is so published, within 7 months from the date of issue of letters, the fiduciary shall not be chargeable for any assets or moneys that he may have paid in good faith in satisfaction of any lawful claims or of any legacies or distributions to the legatees or distributees of the decedent before such claim was presented. Such 7 month period shall begin on the date letters were first issued to any fiduciary, including a temporary administrator or a preliminary executor, and shall not be interrupted by any subsequent issue of letters, except that the time during which there is no fiduciary in office shall not be counted as part of such period. and § 1803: Every claim against the estate of a decedent other than claims for expenses of administration and claims of the United States or the state of New York must be in writing, contain a statement of the facts upon which it is based and the amount thereof. In addition the fiduciary may require the claimant to present proof by affidavit that the amount of the claim is justly due, that all payments thereon, if any, have been credited, that the claimant knows of no offsets and no evidence of indebtedness and holds no security, except as specifically described in the affidavit.

IMO, a realtor is there to find buyers, not the legal paperwork. The realor isn't worth a lot of money for the legal stuff because the realtor, at least in my experience, doesn't actually do a lot of the legal paperwork. In my cases, the realtor(s) just filled in the standard TREC (Texas) home buying contract based on verbal feedback from all parties and once all signatures were on there, this was handed to a title company that took care of the rest (coordination with bank, deed, recordings, closing). If I was planning on FSBO (only in a strong sellers market), I would: * Search the net for a standard home buying contract. Only if that comes from a reputable source (like TREC in TX; which was used by all the realtors that I ever dealt with) and if it is written in clear language would I use it w/o an attorney. Otherwise I'd look up a real estate attorney in your state to get a good contract. * search for a title company and ask them what the info is they need to proceed after a contract has been signed. * market the house (this is where a good realtor is valuable) * after negotiating the sale and the contract is signed, contact the title company again and let them handle the rest.

Tiff is exactly right. It is against Houzz/Gardenweb policy to sell plants or anything else within the forums. Without that policy, these forums would soon become an annoying marketplace. The issue with patented plants is an entirely different matter, guided by Federal patent protection laws. Anyone propagating and selling patented plants without the proper mandatory licensing from the patent holder is liable for patent infringement and can (and should) be prosecuted. The laws apply to professionals, to garden groups, and to us backyard growers. Make sense?

Ok Salt, not a good idea....... Here is another idea to save the house. Build a concrete flood wall around the house. Make the wall wide -like a patio all the way around the house, that would look really pretty with potted flower trees and patio sets......,but it can be very expensive though.......may be diy?