Palm Beach is not the only place for high dollar probate litigation. Where else can a daughter sue a mother over $800,000 in gifts and a family trust and a promised gift for a house.  Massachusetts  …. Sort of. This is a case where a daughter and her husband sued her mom because they claim mom was supposed to make a gift of $800,000 to them. This trust lawsuit was in federal court in Massachusetts and was dismissed. Family members and heirs at law in Palm Beach may want to read this recent case signed April 9, 2014.

What if you are involved in a Palm Beach probate administration but there are other probates being filed in other states or counties?  What if there is are multiple inheritance lawsuits filed over joint bank accounts, Palm Beach trustees, or related Palm Beach estate issues?   Do you have to engage in probate litigation in every estate lawsuit all at the same time?  

Palm Beach estate litigation firms and their beneficiary and executor clients know that probate litigation combines a lot of “stuff.”  Probate litigators from Palm Beach Gardens to Boca Raton use evidence  & Florida probate law to apply it to very fact-specific will challenges & inheritance lawsuits.  You need credible evidence, or what the Palm Beach probate courts call “substantial competent evidence.” So, can a computer-generated report get admitted into evidence at a Palm Beach estate lawsuit trial?  Isn’t it hearsay and inadmissible?

Probate litigators in Palm Beach know that there are many privileges under the Florida Evidence Code which prevent the disclosure of information. We are talking about the other side to a Probate Lawsuit trying to get your personal documents and information—either from you or from your service providers.  Can an heir or a party to a Palm Beach estate case get your therapist’s notes from your counseling sessions? 

A recent Florida appeals case involving business partners stands for the legal proposition that a right to an accounting is not necessarily a breach of fiduciary duty.  Palm Beach beneficiaries of estates & trusts should listen up.   You have rights under the Florida Trust Code, for Palm Beach Trusts, and you also have rights under the Florida Probate Code regarding Palm Beach estates.   If you are not receiving the information you want about an inheritance or your trust or a Palm Beach Probate, you can file an action for an accounting. 

Everyone who has seen a television show or Hollywood movie about courtroom drama knows that there are rules of evidence.  For Palm Beach estate litigation law firms, Chapter 90 of the Florida Statutes, the Florida Evidence Code, is the guiding light.  You have to do the little things: like move the original document into evidence —not a copy.  If you are involved in a Palm Beach or Ft. Lauderdale estate dispute, you might want to read this short legal opinion issued yesterday from the Palm Beach Appeals Court. 

A recent Florida Supreme Court probate case demonstrates why writing your own will on a form may not make a lot of sense.  In Palm Beach probate circles, I’ve started to see more “do it yourself” wills or “internet” wills being used.  This is a strong case for paying a few bucks to go to a Palm Beach estate planning attorney to get a Florida will — and to get it done right.  In this case, a Florida will failed to distribute an inheritance received after the will was signed, which may have been un-intended.   For estate planning clients who want a simple will, this could happen to you…………

While Florida has been described as a “debtors haven”, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  Palm Beach estate planning attorneys LOVE Florida’s laws protecting your property from others.  Most creditors can’t get your Florida Homestead, regardless of whether it’s a small condo in Jupiter, Florida or a mansion on the ocean in Boca Raton.  Florida law gives its residents a lot of protections to keep their property and not lose it in a Palm Beach lawsuit.  If you want to protect some of your property, ask a Palm Beach wills and trust lawyer to  help you. Until then, consider a very recent Florida Appeals case about how your annuities are protected.

Attorneys fees in a Palm Beach estate lawsuit can become an important part of your trial strategy.  After all, you don’t want your attorneys fees to approach the amount of  your damages, right?  Unless, you are confident that you have a chance to get the other side to pay your attorneys fees.  In the Florida Probate Code and the Florida Trust Code, many Palm Beach probate litigation law firms know that there are so called “fee shifting ” statutes which can permit a Probate Court to award attorneys fees & cost to the winning side.  Probate Court judges can also decrease someone’s inheritance by the amount of the winning side’s attorneys fees.  But this is about another fee shifting statute which is often referred to as the “offer of judgment” statute by Palm Beach trial lawyers.  If you are involved in Palm Beach probate litigation, you may want to read this case.

Everyone knows that the discovery process is permitted in Palm Beach estate litigation by the Florida Probate Rules and also the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.  One of the great privileges or protections of Florida law for heirs and family members who are involved in a Palm Beach inheritance lawsuit is the attorney client privilege. You are not required to produce or disclose communications you have with your estate litigator: no matter how much the other side wants your information.  It’s confidential & privileged.   For those estate or trust beneficiaries involved in a probate lawsuit in Palm Beach Gardens or Delray Beach, you may want to read this March 28, 2014 opinion from Florida’s 5th District Court of Appeal.