Palm Beach probate has seen probate disputes about money and big Palm Beach Trusts, for sure.  And often, heirs don’t agree on who inherits the personal property like the stamp collection or artwork, jewelry or family photos.  But it’s sad when families are fighting in Palm Beach County, Florida over the remains of one who has passed away.  Ashes. Burial instructions.  A Palm Beach County case right now is on appeal dealing with who controls the ashes of a young man who passed away in 2010.  Parents fighting in court over a son’s ashes.

Think you have your estate plan all up to date and in place, right? You carefully scrutinized your will & revocable  trust after evaluating who gets what when you’re gone. What could go wrong, right? If you think there may be an estate lawsuit over “undue influence”, or if you are involved in one right now, read on.

Who is the “mysterious billionaire” the San Jose Mercury News reported purchased the largest life insurance policy ever? While the identity of the purchaser of the $201 Million life insurance policy may remain wrapped in privacy for now, consider why you, or your estate, may want life insurance to be a part, perhaps a small part, of your estate plan. Lest you think this is a sales pitch, read on, as some of the non-traditional reasons for life insurance may help your estate with inheritance disputes once you’re gone.

If you are the trustee of a Palm Beach trust, don’t look any further that the front page of today’s Palm Beach Post, www.palmbeachpost.com, for why you should think twice about investing trust assets in private deals.   Palm Beach County is the center, again, of another Palm Beach fraud and Ponzi scheme that bilked investors.  The Post estimates that two schemers operated a $70 Million Ponzi scheme. 

Are you worried that a Palm Beach inheritance lawsuit may mean that your private financial information becomes a court record?  Do you want the whole world to learn how much you are worth just because you objected to a will in a Palm Beach probate?   Is the other side to a Palm Beach probate litigation case trying to “discover” information about your assets, or business or wealth?  You may want to read a very recent case from Florida’s 2nd District Court of Appeal which was just handed down on March 14, 2014.

Let’s say your mom is a successful real estate mogul who lives in Boca Raton with all her wealth wrapped up in her company.  BIG retirement account.  Not worried about an inheritance?  How about your dad: maybe he’s a wealthy deal maker who lives on the ocean in Delray Beach, Florida. (Huge joint account at a Palm Beach trust company).  They are divorced but they each remarried.   They love you, right? No chance to be cut out of the Palm Beach will, right?  (You’ve even seen the Palm Beach will and the revocable trust. You inherit. )  And you gave them grandchildren. But accidents do happen.

Can someone who is suing you in an inheritance lawsuit get access to all your emails?  Put another way, can someone you are suing in a Palm Beach probate lawsuit read ALL your emails?

On March 12th, 2014, the appeals court for Palm Beach probate & guardianship cases issued a VERY important opinion involving joint bank accounts & Palm Beach Guardianships.   Anyone who is involved in a Palm Beach guardianship and is concerned with the care of the incapacitated person & how you  are going to pay for the services and care should read this.  But more so, two spouses who are on a joint account should read this Palm Beach probate appeals case if the spouses may be adverse to each other.   This is one of the most important joint bank account cases in years for Palm Beach probate.

Should Palm Beach trustees buy Twitter www.twitter.com & Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pankauski-Law-Firm-PLLC/223065554446549?ref=br_tf  now?   Are these two US companies merely high-flying speculative stocks chased by momentum investors?  Or are they something historic, defining the new technology & services of social media–and our future? Do their recent stock prices represent a unique &  very special buying opportunity for Palm Beach trusts which, 5 -10 years from now Palm Beach trustees will look back on and ask “Why didn’t I buy more?”   Or is the recent downdraft in their stock prices  a harbinger of more bad news?   Here are some thoughts for Florida trustees when considering social media stocks and what may be prudent for Palm Beach trusts under Florida trust law.

John Pankauski, a West Palm Beach estate litigator, will address the Boca Raton Community Foundation and the Northern Trust Roundtable of wealth professionals this coming Thursday, April 17th, 2014 in Boca Raton.  In attendance will be Boca Raton probate lawyers, Palm Beach estate planning attorneys, Delray Beach estate accountants and money managers.