How to Remove a Personal Representative (executor of the will) in Florida. Florida Probate Code §733.504

When a person passes away in Florida, unless the value of that person’s estate is extremely negligible, Florida Probate Law mandates that a personal representative (sometimes called an executor of the will) be appointed to administer the Florida estate. A Florida personal representative will be appointed by the Florida probate court regardless if the decedent passed away with a will, or without a will.

The role of the personal representative in Florida is to carry out the Florida estate administration in accordance with the wishes of the decedent.  As you might have guessed, this can be a difficult and troublesome process when the decedent did not leave behind a will.  

In some instances, the beneficiaries of the estate will not like the personal representive that is appointed, or the way that particular personal representive is administering the Florida estate.  Any West Palm Beach estate administration attorney can tell you that in this case, the beneficiaries, and anyone that has a stake in the estate, may wish to remove the personal representative.

This is where Section 733.504 of the Florida Probate Code comes into play.

In Florida, a personal representative may be removed for any of the following causes:

1. Adjudication that the personal representative is incapacitated.
2. Physical or mental incapacity rendering the personal representative incapable of the discharge of his or her duties.
3. Failure to comply with any order of the court, unless the order has been superseded on appeal.
4. Failure to account for the sale of property or to produce and exhibit the assets of the estate when so required.
5. Wasting or maladministration of the estate.
6. Failure to give bond or security for any purpose.
7. Conviction of a felony.
8. Insolvency of, or the appointment of a receiver or liquidator for, any corporate representative.
9. Holding or acquiring conflicting or adverse interests against the estate that will or may interfere with the administration of the estate as a whole. This cause of removal shall not apply to the surviving spouse because of the exercise of the right to the elective share, family allowance, or exemptions, as provided elsewhere in th[e] code.
10. Revocation of the probate of the decedent’s will that authorized or designated the appointment of the personal representative.
11. Removal of domicile from Florida, if domicile was a requirement of initial appointment.
12. The personal representative would not now be entitled to appointment.

You can see the full text of Section 733.504 of the Florida Probate Code here.

So the question then is, are you having problems with the personal representative of yourestate in Delray Beach Probate court?  Do you want to remove the executor in your Fort Lauderdale estate administration?  Use the text of §733.504 to your benefit.

See http://www.pankauskilawfirm.com/ for videos and information on Wills in Florida, Florida Trust Law, Estate Planning, and Estate Administration in Florida.