Complex Legal Challenges
To many persons, their dog, cat or other pet is like part of the family. More and more, people desire to make arrangements for the care of their pet through their estate plan. A trust can be set up through which the pet's needs can be addressed. Under traditional...
In Florida, the state's wrongful death statute contained in Chapter 768, Florida Statutes, specifies that only the Personal Representative of the deceased person's estate may bring a wrongful death action. The Personal Representative brings the action seeking to...
As with most questions under the law, the decision whether a person should leave an inheritance to a disabled beneficiary is that "it depends." However, in most instances, if a beneficiary is disabled or incapacitated, you should consider whether a special needs trust...
Many experienced estate attorneys in Florida will advise that it is often best to do everything reasonably to try to avoid probate. In some instances, the question arises whether there is any good reason to open a probate. In the right situation, the answer can be a...
Like many questions under the estate and probate law, the answer depends on a number of factors. Typically, if a Trust is still revocable, meaning that the Grantor who established the Trust is still living and competent, then a Court is not normally authorized...
Under certain situations, a beneficiary of a deceased person's estate may wish NOT to receive the inheritance that was left to them. By law, they can "disclaim" all or part of the inheritance and thereby not receive what the decedent left them. Accomplishing this is...
A frequently employed estate planning instrument is the Living Trust or Revocable Trust. Such a Trust can minimize or avoid probate altogether. In order to be effective, the Trust should be funded, i.e. assets should be transferred into it. Clients establishing...
Timing can mean everything in probate--including when to challenge a person being appointed as Personal Representative of an estate. As with objecting to a Will, Florida law provides a mechanism for any interested person (beneficiary, creditors, etc.) to be put on a...
A Last Will and Testament can be challenged in Florida but the timeframe to do so is not always open-ended. Florida law provides a mechanism for any interested person (beneficiary, creditors, etc.) to be put on a "time-clock" to object to a Will. The document...
Estate planning lawyers often use the term "Durable Power of Attorney" and although many people know what a Power of Attorney ("POA") is, they often do not understand what it means to say that the POA is "Durable." Under Florida law, if a POA is Durable, it...