Recent Blog Posts
Do I Need to Include Intellectual Property in My Estate Plan?
When a famous singer dies, you often hear news reports about the legal fate of their song catalog or other “intellectual property” (IP) rights. Many of us do not consider IP when making our own estate plan. But even if you never became a millionaire writing books or inventing new technologies, you might still… Read More »
Does My College-Bound Child Need an Estate Plan?
For many Florida parents, the relief of watching their children graduate from high school will quickly turn to apprehension as they go off to college this fall. In addition to starting at a new school, these college-bound kids are now (mostly) legal adults. What does this mean in terms of estate planning? Does your… Read More »
How Your LLC May Affect Your Estate Plan
Many Floridians own their own business. But what happens to such business, at least from a legal standpoint, if the owner suddenly passes away? The answer to this question depends greatly on the business’ legal structure and governing documents. Let’s take a relatively simple example. Abigail and Leah decide to start a consulting business… Read More »
What Is Your “Domicile” for Estate Planning Purposes?
Where you live at the time of the death plays a critical role in the administration of your probate estate. This is because your “domicile” normally determine what state’s law applies to the probate proceedings. For example, if Mary owned homes in Florida and South Carolina but lived full-time in her Florida house when… Read More »
Why Do You Need to Notify Social Security of a Person’s Death?
One of the first tasks of probate and estate administration is notifying Social Security of the decedent’s passing. This is critical because it may be necessary to return a Social Security payment made after the date of death. Typically, if the decedent had a funeral, then the funeral home will make this notification. But… Read More »
Florida Legislature Approves Electronic Wills
Even at a time when we keep most of our lives on our smartphones and tablets, estate planning has largely remained a paper affair. But that may soon change, at least here in Florida, as the state legislature has approved a comprehensive bill that would allow residents to create legally binding “electronic wills.” The… Read More »
Fight for Control of Tom Petty’s Estate Highlights Risks of Naming Multiple Decision-Makers
One of the key goals of estate planning is to establish who will be in charge of making decisions regarding your property. In some cases, a person may decide that one person should not have sole authority and appoint multiple people to act as either co-executor or co-trustees. If that is an option you… Read More »
Frequently Asked Questions About Florida Probate Inventories
One of the first–and most important–tasks of formal probate administration in Florida is filing an inventory of the estate with the court. Basically, an inventory is a list of assets that belong to the probate estate. By law, the personal representative of the estate must prepare the inventory and send a copy of it… Read More »
Should My Estate Plan Leave Individual Assets to Specific Heirs?
When it comes to estate planning, some people want to go into great detail with respect to the distribution of individual assets. Such an approach may not always be advisable, however. Especially if you own assets that may fluctuate greatly in value over time, relying on an individual-asset approach when making your will or… Read More »
Are Estate Planning Trusts Taxable?
Trusts are commonly used in estate planning as a means of transferring assets without the need for formal probate. In some scenarios, a trust may also confer certain tax benefits. But it is important to understand how taxes actually work with respect to trusts. Federal Income Taxes and Revocable Trusts Florida does not assess… Read More »
