Probate vs Surrogate Courts: whats the difference?
<p>In the US, and specifically New York state, what is the difference between a <strong>probate court</strong> and a <strong>surrogate court</strong>?</p>

<p>A &quot;probate court&quot;, generically, is a court that handles <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Probate" rel="nofollow noreferrer">probate</a> cases.</p>
<p>In many jurisdictions, the official name of the court that has this role is simply &quot;Probate Court&quot;.</p>
<p>New York State apparently thought that naming scheme was too straightforward, so in that state, the court that handles probate cases (and also adoptions) has instead the unusual name of &quot;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Surrogate%27s_Court" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Surrogate's Court</a>&quot;.  I don't know why this is, but it's probably historical.  Also oddly, this court handles adoptions as well.</p>
<p>New York does not have any court with the official name of &quot;Probate Court&quot;.</p>

legal-terms court probate