In a nutshell, Summary Administration in Florida is a type of probate proceeding for small estates. To be eligible: The estate must contain less than $75,000 in non-exempt assets (typically, assets other than the decedent’s home) OR At least 2 years have passed since the date of death No brainer right? Not exactly. Lately, I’ve [...]
[podcast]http://weprobateflorida.com/podcasts/do-i-have-to-probate-the-dog.mp3[/podcast] I don’t get a whole lot of questions about probating Sparky or Mr. Wigglesworth but make no mistake, pets are considered personal property and theoretically could be subject to probate. Certainly Florida probate courts have encountered animals in probate, but domestic house pets are often overlooked. The thing about pets, particularly dogs or cats, [...]
There seems to be a pattern developing lately where clients (and tire kickers) are apparently paying creditors out of pocket – that is – they are making say, credit card payments on behalf of the decedent before probate has even started! I can’t be sure if they were coerced by a collections agent or if [...]
I have spent countless hours on any given week hearing about what the evil stepmother, wicked stepsister, deadbeat father and estranged spouse did to be undeserving of an inheritance. My response has always been the same. “Tough cookies” Florida Probate law does not care if your sister never visited mom at the nursing home. Florida [...]
No, I’m not starting a series on probate tips, but I do want to highlight this particular point. One of the biggest mistakes you can make as both the personal representative of the estate or as a Florida probate attorney, is reading the will too quickly or not reading it at all! I just completed [...]
Every once in a while, we get a call from a prospective Florida probate client who spends about 20 minutes explaining who inherits under the decedent’s Last Will and Testament, only to finish by saying “but I only have a copy of the Will.” That IS a problem. Under Florida Statutes, the custodian of the [...]
