Articles Posted in Probate Wills Trusts Estates

We tend to think of heirs as being our family, both immediate and extended. But when it comes to Florida probate law, they’re not. Which means if you don’t make a will, or if you lose your will, or if no one can find your will after you die, then the State of Florida might…

A recent Florida probate case answered the question “When is a survivor not a survivor?” In Chauncy v. Gorden, 374 So.3d 884 (Fla. 5th DCA), the appellate court upheld the trial court’s determination that “use of the word ‘survivor’ in a will referred to the survivor of the two persons named in the will, not…

As Florida lawyers, we tend to think that what’s in writing counts more than what’s said. It does, but what’s in writing doesn’t always control. Larkins v. Mendez is a case in point.  Sometimes a Florida resident adds a child to their bank account, which raises the question whether doing so is intended to be…

Nat Stirberg died leaving his surviving spouse Valerie Stirberg and children to litigate over who owns his homestead apartment. The case was decided on March 15, 2023, when the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal in Stirberg v. Fein as Co-Trustee of Nat Stirberg Revocable Residence Trust, 48 Fla. L. Weekly D577, decided that the…

Florida probate lawyers know that when a Florida resident dies owing people money those people need to file claims against the decedent’s estate in a Florida probate court proceeding. The same applies when the decedent dies in an auto accident: anyone claiming that the decedent caused injuries must file a claim in the probate proceeding.…

Everyone knows you need a license to practice law. Everyone knows it’s a crime to practice law without a license. But what most people don’t know is that services performed by an unlicensed person don’t incur a fee. So even if you agreed to pay a fee for services, you don’t have to pay the…

When a Florida resident dies without a will, the decedent is said to have died intestate, and the Florida Probate Code states who will inherit the estate. If there is a surviving spouse and no descendants, then all goes to the surviving spouse. If there are descendants and no surviving spouse, then all goes to…

Everyone knows that it’s the “last” will that someone makes before they die that counts. But it’s really the last “valid” will that counts. So who’s to say what’s the last valid will? The probate court gets to decide that. And for the probate court to decide, it needs to have all the wills that…

One of the reasons people try to avoid probate, besides the obvious one, is to avoid percentage probate fees. Florida, like many states, expressly allows attorneys to charge attorneys fees based on a percentage of the value of the probate estate. But there is an alternative: hourly fees. An hourly fee more directly compensates the…

Formal notice of a Florida probate proceeding must be served by a means of delivery requiring proof of delivery. Formal notices are sent along with copies of various probate documents in order to legally bind the person being served. The formal notice in a probate proceeding is similar to a summons in a civil proceeding.…