If you are considering a will contest in West Palm Beach you are going to want to hire a probate attorney. The question then becomes how much is that going to cost? The city of Portsmouth may be stuck with a $300k lawyer bill after the successfully brought a will contest against a police officer who used undue influence to get millions.
Are you about to leave a sizable inheritance to your heirs in West Palm Beach? I bet you are wondering what your heirs will spend that money on. Do you have any guesses? A recent study (in 2012) from Ohio State University looked into just that. Learn what your kids would do with their West Palm Beach inheritance.
On Wednesday, November 4, 2015, in a detailed published opinion, the Fourth District held that the Public Guardian appointed by the Department of Elder Affairs cannot be forced to accept appointment as guardian in any particular case. The case arose when an existing charitable guardian sought an order allowing it to resign as guardian because it was having difficulty with the ward. The guardian sought an order appointing the 15th Judicial Circuit Public Guardian in its place. The trial court granted the motion and appointed the Public Guardian without notice to the Public Guardian. The Public Guardian sought rehearing. At the rehearing, the trial court ordered the Public Guardian to accept the appointment. In its opinion, the Fourth District held that Chapter 744 does not empower a trial judge to force the Public Guardian to accept the appointment as guardian. The appellate court noted that there is a statutory limitation on the number of wards that may be accepted in to the public program. As a result, not every candidate for public guardianship can or will be accepted. Instead, there is a wait list. The decision to accept a ward and serve as guardian is an executive branch function handled by the Department of Elder Affairs. Here, because no successor was immediately available, the incumbent charitable guardian was required to remain in place until a suitable successor can be appointed. The case is Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, Inc., Public Guardianship Program v. Ferd and Gladys Alpert Jewish […]
Are you a trust beneficiary seeking a trust accounting from your Palm Beach trustee? If so, you may want to read a brand new trust lawsuit legal opinion from the Palm Beach appellate court. The 4th District Court of Appeal just made a ruling on trust accounting case involving a trust beneficiary who sued his mother and brother as co-trustees for an accounting.
Are you considering filing a will contest? Is the will subject to a “no contest clause?” It may surprise you to know that the West Palm Beach probate judge cannot enforce that clause! Do you know why?
If you are concerned about the trustee of your West Palm Beach trust acting improperly listen up. Do you know what an injunction is? You may be entitled to a Court order that halts the trustee from acting without Court permission. Are you entitled to an injunction from the probate court in West Palm Beach? Check out this recent case out of the Texas Court of Appeals to learn more.
Are you currently serving as the personal representative of an estate in West Palm Beach? If the estate is subject to formal probate you may be required to retain a resident agent that is a licensed Florida Attorney. Do you know how much they are going to charge? Fortunately Florida is one of the few jurisdictions that sets out the reasonableness of fees by statute.
Are you considering using a trust for purposes of creditor and asset protection? Do you know the difference between a foreign trust and a domestic trust sitting in West Palm Beach? Before you execute a trust charter and get on the hook for the costs of administering it you should learn the pros and cons of both.
John Pankauski, a probate litigation lawyer at the West Palm Beach, Florida law firm Pankauski Law Firm PLLC, testified yesterday, November 4, 2015, as an expert on Florida Trusts. Pankauski’s trial testimony was in a trust lawsuit in Palm Beach County, Florida, in the probate division of the Main Courthouse, West Palm Beach. The trust lawsuit where Pankauski testified was brought by a trust beneficiary against his brother, the sole trustee of a family trust. The trust litigation involved claims by the beneficiary against the trustee for breach of fiduciary duty, what the proper standard of care of a Florida trustee was, as well as issues of self-dealing and conflicts of interest by the trustee.
Congratulations to Robert Hauser of the Pankauski Law Firm PLLC of West Palm Beach, Florida, for his recent victory at the 4th District Court of Appeal.