Judge orders disclosure in dispute over Milford lawyer's estate conservatorship

by Ethan Fry

MILFORD - Probate Judge Ben Gettinger did not exceed his authority by ordering the disclosure of documents related to the estate of a former lawyer whose housekeeper became her new conservator the month she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, a state Superior Court judge ruled this month.

In a 14-page ruling, Judge Barbara Bellis wrote that the documents requested by a longtime friend and prior conservator of the lawyer, Jackale Williams, "could reasonably lead to the discovery of admissible evidence" related to whether Williams' housekeeper, Sylvia Ponzo, or the housekeeper's mother, Gina McKay, who became conservator of Williams' estate in September 2024, acted in good faith and in accordance with Williams' best interests.

"It is undisputed that after being appointed power of attorney, McKay changed the beneficiary designations of certain financial accounts to the 2024 trust and also transferred over $32,000 from an account outside of the defendants' control," said Bellis' decision. "All these acts occurred in the same month the plaintiff was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease."

In court filings, Williams' cousin and lifelong friend, Claudia Montecalvo, said she and Williams "had long ago made a pact to take each other 'from cradle to grave'" and that she had been appointed conservator following the death of Williams' husband.

But after Williams began having trouble with her memory three years later, Montecalvo and her daughter alleged in court papers, 18 of "Williams' friends and family began reporting that they were being denied access to Williams by Williams' cleaning person, Sylvia Ponzo."

The Montecalvos alleged that a few months later, Ponzo took Williams' phone away "such that Williams stopped responding to calls and texts, when it had otherwise been normal for her to do so." Later that year, Montecalvo's power of attorney was revoked, and a new power of attorney named Ponzo's daughter, McKay, as her new agent.

Montecalvo alleged Ponzo and McKay told Williams "that Claudia planned to sell Williams' home and commit Williams to a nursing home" before a revocable living trust was set up in Williams' name and her home was transferred into it.

After Gettinger ordered the disclosure of documents related to the setup of Williams' 2024 estate, the estate appealed to Superior Court.

Judge Bellis' decision denying the appeal, dated March 20, noted that the prior conservator will "ultimately have the burden of proving any breaches of an agent's duties."

Bellis wrote that the arguments cited by Williams' current conservator arguing against the documents' disclosure while Williams is alive is not consistent with state law or prior cases.

"Under the plaintiff's interpretation, a power of attorney could act in accordance with estate plans despite possibly knowing that (1) the principal was mentally compromised when making them, and (2) the estate plans were changed to benefit her and her relative," the decision said. "The court cannot hold, as a matter of law, that a breach of duty cannot be found under those circumstances." 

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Judge orders disclosure in dispute over Milford lawyer's estate conservatorship