We live in a world where almost every person owns digital valuables. In the past, movies, music, bills, receipts, photos, and other documents were commonly held in physical form. In the event of the death of the original owner, these items were inherited by the beneficiary. However, with rapid tech advances, many of us prefer...
Category: Probate & Inheritance Law
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What Happens When You Do Not Probate a Will?
If a person passes away with a will in place, the decedent will name someone—like a spouse or child—to serve as their personal representative. The personal representative bears the responsibility of closing out the estate, distributing assets, and paying creditors. Having a will requires the personal representative to probate it in court. However, a personal...
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How to Probate Florida Property from Afar
When surviving family members need to probate Florida property from another state, it is vital to understand that, unless the personal representative is the sole interested party, they must hire a Florida probate lawyer to represent the mater in probate court. Survivors do not have to be in Florida to probate assets, although they will need...
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Just Because You Can… Should You?
Would you extract your own tooth? Perform surgery on yourself? Shopping on amazon for things I don’t really need, I came across a few interesting items. Did you know amazon sells a surgical bone saw? Or a human rib spreader? Or dental extraction tools? Neither did I, until now. And the reviews, very entertaining! While...
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Florida Baby Boomers and Probate
As Florida Baby Boomers continue to age, there will inevitably be an increase in the amount of deaths in the United States, especially in Florida, where many baby boomers reside. When a loved one dies, regardless of whether or not they have a will, the estate must go through a process called “probate,” with the...
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What is a Personal Representative (PR) for an estate?
When someone passes away in Florida or while owning assets in Florida, then the estate of the decedent will go through the Florida probate process. Part of this process includes appointing of a Florida personal representative to oversee the affairs of the estate. A personal representative can be an individual, a bank, or a trust...
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Florida Trusts Explained
A trust is an arrangement in which one person (the trustee) manages and holds the title to a property, which can be both personal property and real property, to another (the settler or with) in favor of a third party (the beneficiary). There are many types of Florida trusts. A testamentary trust is created by...
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Probate: The Basics
What is Probate? Probate is a process for gathering the decedent’s assets, paying taxes, claims and expenses and distributing assets to beneficiaries. This is the first legal step of administering the estate of the deceased person through a will. Florida law establishes two types of probate administration: Formal and Summary. These two types of administrations vary...
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Florida Will Contests
A Will is a legal document that states a decedents last wishes and distribution of property and funds. One reason could be that will does not purport to give the party what they want from the estate. As you can imagine, fake wills are admitted into probate often. Thus, a Florida will contest is a useful tool for...
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Notary Public vs. Civil Law Notary
Notary public vs. civil law notary: A civil law notary is distinct from a notary public. On the one hand, a Florida notary public requires very little training, payment of a small fee, and very few duties and responsibilities. On the other hand, a civil law notary requires extensive training, has a tremendous amount of...