§ 1202 Office established; appointment of successor The office of public administrator hereby is continued

Every county has a public administrator whose job is to handle estates when there's no one else available to do it. This usually happens when someone dies without a will and without family members who can step in to manage their affairs. This law keeps that office running and explains how it gets filled when needed.

The public administrator keeps their position unless the court decides to remove them. If the job becomes empty for any reason, whether through removal, retirement, or another cause, the county court must act right away to appoint someone new. The county cannot leave this position empty, since someone needs to be ready to handle these estates as they come up.

In Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk counties, the court has an extra option. It can appoint a deputy public administrator to assist. This deputy can act in place of the public administrator whenever needed, which helps these larger counties manage a bigger workload by having backup help ready.