Minnesota Probate Case Highlights the Peril of Probate without Proper Counsel. Is going it alone (Pro se) worth it?

Do you have to get a Palm Beach Probate litigator to handle  your probate matter? What benefits can a lawyer guarentee you in West Palm Beach Probate Court? Does going Pro-se mean that you may be fighting an up hill battle, ones that you may not be prepared to fight alone? A case out of the Court of Appeals in Minnesotta shows how one lucky pro-se litigant may have never gotten the relief needed had they not been prepared for the uphill battle (a probate appeal, pro se).

• Proceeding with a case without a lawyer is called going pro-se (pronounced “pro” – “say”)
• If you proceed pro se in a matter you will be held to the same legal standard as even the most seasoned Palm Beach Probate Attorneys.
• When the judge decides a matter he can do so with or without prejudice. “With” prejudice means that matter is pretty much closed, the issue has been decided, the judge does not want to see that issue again. “Without” prejudice means that a claim or issue may be ok but it was somewhat deficieint, often a litigant will re raise that issue after they fix that deficiency.
• A pro-se appellant who was acting as the administrator of an estate in Ramsey County Minnesota learned the imporatnce of that difference in a case decided March, 9, 2015.

Voita v. Parrish: the importance of the word without

• Pro-se appellant (special administrator of a probate estate) in Ramsey District (County) Court challenged the dismissal of a lawsuit he brought against a person who allegedly pilfered an estate, by diverting funds due to the estate 
• The case was dismissed when the Court decided that it did not have jurisdiction it stated that the case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning that it could not be taken to a court with jurisdiction
• The appellant appealed, not on those grounds but on other grounds (which he lost) and the court noticed the mistake that he a pro-se litigant likely would have never seen, reversing that order allowing him to pursue in the proper court.
• Want to read the whole case? Check out Voita v Parrish decided March 9, 2015.

What does this have to do with your Florida probate?

• Would you have known before reading this the difference the word with or without makes in your West Palm Beach Probate dispute?
• Would you have the wherewithall to go through the appeals process pro-se?