The provisions as to joinder and representation of persons interested in estates as provided in the surrogate’s court procedure act shall govern joinder and representation of persons interested in express trusts. For these purposes, the term “will” used in the surrogate’s court procedure act shall be construed to mean the instrument creating the trust.
§ 7703.Joinder and representation of persons interested in trust property.
Article 77. Proceeding Relating to Express Trust · Last amended 1981 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 7703 borrows the surrogate's court procedure act's joinder and representation rules for persons interested in estates and applies them to persons interested in express trusts, treating the trust instrument as the equivalent of a will for that purpose.
Full Text of CPLR 7703
Plain-English Summary
Trust proceedings often involve people with contingent or future interests, beneficiaries not yet born, minors, or others who can't easily appear and protect their own interests. CPLR 7703 handles that problem by importing an existing framework rather than building a new one: the surrogate's court procedure act's provisions on joinder and representation of persons interested in estates now govern joinder and representation of persons interested in express trusts as well.
To make that borrowed framework fit, the section redefines a term. Wherever the surrogate's court procedure act uses the word "will," that word is read to mean the instrument creating the trust when applied in this context. That one substitution lets the entire estate-practice framework for representing absent or incapacitated interested parties carry over cleanly to trust proceedings under Article 77.
Frequently Asked Questions
How are absent or incapacitated beneficiaries represented in an Article 77 proceeding?
Through the same joinder and representation provisions the surrogate's court procedure act uses for persons interested in estates, which CPLR 7703 extends to persons interested in express trusts.
What does CPLR 7703 mean when it says "will" refers to the trust instrument?
Because the borrowed surrogate's court procedure act provisions are written for estates, the section instructs that any reference to a "will" be read as a reference to the instrument creating the trust.
Why does CPLR 7703 borrow rules from the surrogate's court procedure act instead of writing its own?
Estate practice already has a developed framework for joining and representing interested persons, including those not yet born or under a disability, so the CPLR extends that existing framework to trust proceedings rather than duplicating it.
Does CPLR 7703 apply to representation of minors interested in a trust?
Yes. It applies the surrogate's court procedure act's representation rules to persons interested in express trusts generally, which includes minors and other persons under a disability.
Is CPLR 7703 limited to trusts created by a written trust agreement?
The section is written to cover the instrument creating the trust, whatever form that instrument takes, treating it as the equivalent of a will for joinder and representation purposes.
Advisory Committee Notes
This section [former § 7703 (repealed, L 1981, ch 78, § 2)] is CPA § 1311 with no change except the addition of captions to conform to the style of the new CPLR generally.
Amendment History
Add, L 1981, ch 178, § 2, eff June 2, 1981.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: joinder trust beneficiaries New Yorkrepresentation express trust proceedingsurrogate's court procedure act trust joinder