Matter of Estate of Garbade

Kathy Garbade (plaintiff) and J. Robert Garbade signed a prenuptial agreement a few hours before their wedding. At the time, Robert was a wealthy business owner with a net worth of $2.5 million, whereas Kathy was unemployed and owned no assets. Robert had insisted that the parties enter into a prenuptial agreement and had directed his attorneys to prepare one. The agreement included a provision waiving Kathy’s right to take an elective share of Robert’s estate at his death. Kathy was advised to seek independent legal counsel before entering into the agreement and was given adequate time to do so. Kathy was also given a detailed disclosure of Robert’s assets. Kathy, who said that she only wanted to marry Robert and did not want any of his money, signed the agreement without reading it and without having an attorney review it. Kathy was therefore unaware that she had waived her right to take an elective share of Robert’s estate. Robert died two years later, survived by Kathy and two sons (defendants) from a previous marriage. Kathy filed a notice to take her elective share of Robert’s probate estate pursuant to New York’s spousal-election statute. The sons, as personal representatives of the estate, moved for summary judgment, arguing that Kathy had waived her right of election by signing the prenuptial agreement. Kathy responded that her waiver was invalid because it had been procured by fraud or other misconduct. The trial court granted the sons’ motion, and Kathy appealed.