Although we all would like our of our assets to be dispersed wholly to our loved ones once we pass away, in some instances, however, creditors will have a claim on your Florida estate.

On New Year’s Day, Florida federal district judge Robert Hinkle, who earlier had overturned Florida’s ban on same-sex marriages, ordered all county clerks to begin issuing same-sex marriage licenses beginning Tuesday, January 6, 2015. Prior to his order, there was confusion over which clerks were allowed to issue the licenses. But on January 1st, Hinkle clarified that his ruling applies to ALL counties.

On this blog we frequently discuss what problems can occur during the process of estate administration in Florida. But what are someways you can prevent problematic issues from occuring before the estate administration process? One of the most important things you can do is to discuss your estate plans with the people whom you wish to include in your estate.

One major concern for those considering creating a trust agreement in Florida, is whether the trust should be arevocable trust or an irrevocable trust.  West Palm Beach Estate Planning attorneys get this question all of the time.  In reality, however, there is no clear winner when considering anirrevocable trust vs. a revocable trust Florida.   Both Florida estate planning tools have significant value, and the right choice for you will often depend on what goals you want to accomplish.

Guardians are appointed to care for people who cannot take care of themselves. The person a guardianprotects is called that guardian’s ward. 

A personal representative (sometimes called an executor of a will) in Florida is the person who carries out the will and wishes of a decedent. But the duties of a personal representative, as West Palm Beach Probate litigation attorneys will tell you, stretch beyond the will:

Recently we reported on a story published in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune regarding the exploitation of the elderly by the guardians appointed to protect them.  (See the story here: http://extra.heraldtribune.com/kindness-strangers/ )

When the elderly work with attorneys to plan their estate and create probate tools like trusts, we would like to think that the attorney is working with the best interest of the client in mind.  However, a recent California case on the financial exploitation of an elderly woman by her estate planning attorney shows that isn’t always the case:

When you have multiple residences in different states, estate planning in Florida can sometimes become a little bit confusing.

The claim of Tortious Interference with Expectation of Inheritance (West Palm Beach, Florida) sometimes called “Intentional Interference with Expectation of Inheritance” (Boca Raton) affords individuals an opportunity to pursue legal action if another party uses fraud or otherunlawful methods to prevent them from obtaining an inheritance.