Probate is the legal process of administering the assets of an estate once the owner passes away. There are many misconceptions regarding probate and estate administration since it is something that many people do not want to think about. After all, most people do not...
Probate
Probate and creating an estate plan
Some Florida residents who are planning for the future of their assets might want to avoid having their estates go through probate. One way to do this is by making heirs the co-owners of assets. However, the disadvantage here is that the co-owner also has access to...
IRS files a claim against Aretha Franklin’s estate
Florida residents may remember that Aretha Franklin passed away in August 2018 from cancer. According to the IRS, her estate owes over $6.3 million in unpaid income taxes from 2012 to 2018. The organization is one of many interested parties listed in documents that...
Tools available to avoid probate
Florida residents have many different options as it relates to transferring assets. Assets that are in the name of the deceased person only will have to go through probate unless other arrangements are made. For example, a beneficiary designation could be made on a...
Preparing an estate plan for the death of both spouses
Following the death of George H.W. Bush just a few months after his wife's death, some Florida couples may have wondered how their estate plans would be affected if one died shortly after the after. Sometimes called "broken-heart syndrome," this is not an unusual...
3 children of late singer Glen Campbell end estate dispute
Country music fans in Florida remember the hits of singer and songwriter Glen Campbell fondly. His passing in 2017, however, resulted in three of his children contesting the validity of his will that excluded them from any inheritance. The children have now chosen to...
Dealing with the Florida probate process
Probate is the process of administering, organizing and sorting a person's estate after he or she dies. In cases where the person leaves a will, he or she is said to have died testate; without a will, the decedent is intestate. Florida law governs the probate process...
Choosing the right executor for an estate
Florida residents who are thinking about their plans for the future may want to make sure that they have properly arranged to pass their belongings on to their loved ones. When writing a will, one of the most important decisions people can make is not about the...
The basics of creating an estate plan
Florida fans of Aretha Franklin may know that she died without an estate plan despite the fact that she had a special-needs son and her health was poor. Prince also died without a will, and his relatives have still not received any payments from the estate. While most...
A simple explanation of a guardianship in Florida
Attorneys in Florida are often asked about legal guardianship, why it is used and what the requirements are. As the name implies, a guardianship is a proceeding for the protection of those who cannot protect themselves. When someone is unable to fully care for him or...