While Florida probate administration may have many parallels to administration in other states, there are certainly some unique requirements and customs that are unique to Florida. For example, many states have a proceeding refererred to as “small estate administration” while Florida’s rough equivalent is called “summary administration.” In some states, small estate administration is often confused with small estate affidavits (which are legally distinct from actual administration.)

In order to determine if an estate is eligible for small estate administration or a simple small estate affidavit depends on the type of assets and whether or not they exceed a specified threshhold value. Florida’s summary administration generally requires that either non-exempt assets do not exceed $75,000 or that more than 2 years have passed since date of death. Furthermore, attorney involvement is almost always required. To be clear, Florida does not have a procedure called “small estate administration.”

One of the most frequent questions I field goes something like this:

“The bank needs Letters of Administration or Letters Testamentary in order to release the money. How do I get these Letters?”

The short answer is “formal administration,” a process that takes a minimum of 6 months and averages 9-12 months.

My knee jerk reaction to this question is always: “Are you sure you need Letters of Administration?”

Very often, Letters of Administration (often referred to as Letters Testamentary in other states) are wholly unnecessary – and because you can only secure such Letters in formal administration (a longer, costlier process), you may be subjecting yourself to a process which we jokingly refer to as “probate overkill.”

Banks have manuals, policies and guidelines that can make accessing funds of the deceased rather difficult. While this may seem like an unnecessary imposition, it’s understandable that the bank is trying to shield iteself from any liabilities.

My point is, bank employees don’t always know what they need. Letters of Administration may be necessary, but in smaller estates (>75,000), formal administration can be “probate overkill.” I don’t blame them – they aren’t exepected to understand probate law.

They are simply referencing what the policy manuals and customer service wikis (a computer database that helps employees find answers to common questions) tell them to say whenever a customer says:

“Mom died and I need to access her checking account so I can pay for her funeral.”

All the bank tell heard was “mom died.” (followed by a suppressed panic attack)

In an instant, a manual or database is accessed to determine how to deal with bank accounts when the owner has died. The manual probably says “persistently ask for Letters of Administration or a court order until the heirs stop bugging you.” Humorous and annoying at the same time, the reality is that bankers, bank tellers, financial brokerage and life insurance representatives do not understand probate, much less Florida probate!

Bottom line: Letters of Administration are only issued in Florida’s formal administration process (formal probate) and in many cases, summary administration orders are sufficient to distribute bank funds. Let your attorney make this determination before you jump to any conclusions on the kind of court documents that you need.

99.99% of the time, the answer is yes.

Generally speaking, a personal representative must have attorney representation before the probate courts in Florida.

“But it’s a simple estate! Just a house and a checking account!”

Sorry, that’s not the criteria for a “simple estate” and it certainly
doesn’t lay the groundwork for rules requiring representation.

Here’s the primary rule:

Every guardian and every personal representative, unless the personal representative remains the sole interested
person, shall be represented by an attorney admitted to practice in Florida.

I know what some of you are thinking…

“Well, I am the sole beneficiary, so I must be able to represent myself.”

You may very well be the sole beneficiary but you are probably not the sole interested person. Interested persons may
include all sorts of people or entities, but the primary concern here are creditors.

“Well, we paid off all the credit cards, so we’re good right?”

Did you pay off Medicaid? Medicaid is a “class 3″ creditor which basically means they are up there on the list of people who
must be paid before any beneficiary takes their share of the estate. Medicaid must be notified if the decedent was 55 or older.

I could go on and on, but here’s the bigger picture:

We have taken no less than 20+ cases in the last year for clients who tried to start Summary Administration themselves. They had
convinced themselves it was easy enough to do that it was “just a few forms.” Of course until they had to provide the
appropriate proposed orders to the judge. Others didn’t know that there was a “proof of will” process required. Still
others didnt’ realize that the court clerks don’t give legal advice.

If a court clerk overlooks the fact that you dont’ have an undersigning attorney on your paperwork, you might get your foot in the
door. But the consequences of starting a process you’re not sure how to finish can be brutal – and the clerks won’t help you one
bit. Don’t blame them – they aren’t allowed to give advice.

And if the estate is NOT eligible for Summary Administration, don’t even think about going it alone. You won’t even get
past the clerks in Formal Administration.

One last thing to note: Petitioners, Executors and Personal Representatives are held personally liable
for their actions during the administration of probate. This is not an arena you want to dabble in simply because you’ve found a few
forms online.

You certainly don’t have to hire us, but please…hire an attorney to get it done right from the start.

Still not convinced? Have a look at the Florida Probate Rules.

Florida Probate Rules

Here’s a quick list of questions we entertain quite often.

(60 seconds is a stretch unless you read fast!)

10. What is probate anyways?

The court process of paying off debts and distributing assets to a decedent’s heirs.

9. My husband just died. Do I need to probate the house?

If it was your homestead and you were on the deed, then no. If you weren’t on the deed, yes. There are potentially a half dozen answers to this question – contact us!

8. Isn’t probate in Florida just like any other state? Aren’t there just a few forms to fill out?

That was 2 questions. Yes and No – it’s not ever that easy. Anyone who tells you otherwise won’t be there when something goes wrong.

7. Do I really need an attorney?

If you’re the personal representative (executor), then yes.

6. I took care of mom in her last year. Can I get reimbursed?

Maybe. But I’m sure mom didn’t charge you for childcare when you turned 18!

5. I have 3 siblings. Dad told me he wanted me to have the house. There’s no will though.

If there’s no will, he probably didn’t want you to have it that badly! (just joshin’)

4. Is a copy of the Will good enough?

Typically, no.

3. How do I contest a Will?

You call a Florida probate litigator. We don’t do Will contests.

2. How long does probate in Florida take?

Depends on the size of the estate, the number of creditors and the efficiency of the probate court.

1. How much do you charge for probate?

How much do you have? Just kidding – see our sample Florida probate fees schedule.