Who are Florida heirs and how much do you inherit? Heir Inherit an Intestate Estate Many people die in Florida without a will. When that happens, the estate is called an “intestate” estate. The Florida laws of intestacy rule. What do the laws of intestacy say? They say that heirs inherit. How much? The entire estate. But remember, that you have to pay taxes, claims, creditors and expenses of administration before beneficiaries see a dime. (For more on intestacy, click here.) Who Are Florida Heirs? OK…………..so, who, exactly are Florida heirs? First of all, a surviving spouse is. Descendants are. Like minor or adult children and a deceased child’s children. Note that being an “heir” is different than being an interested person. If the spouse of the deceased Florida resident is the parent of all the children of the deceased Florida resident, the spouse takes the entire estate. Unless he or she waived inheritance rights. Like in a prenup. Then, her or his rights to inherit are limited by the prenup. Assuming the prenup is valid or cannot be turned over. But , then again, sometimes people fight about the “plain” language in a prenup. If the spouse is not the parent of one or more of the deceased Florida resident’s children: the spouse takes half the estate and the other heirs take the other half. Remember: homestead is often a very valuable asset. That’s the one true home of the deceased Florida resident. Although the spouse has lots of […]

What is an Heir in Florida Probates? Heirs inherit millions and millions of dollars from Florida Estates each year !! Heirs is a similar topic to NEXT OF KIN. The definition may just surprise you. Florida Probate Code Definition– understanding the legal definition of what is an heir in Florida probates The Florida Probate Code has a set of definitions. What is the definition of an Heir? “Heirs” or “heirs at law” means those persons, including the surviving spouse, who are entitled under the statutes of intestate succession to the property of a decedent An estate that has no will is called an intestate estate. Put another way: a probate of a Florida decedent that died without a will is called an intestacy. Property passes to Heirs by way of intestacy. The intestacy laws in the Florida Probate Code are found RIGHT HERE. Or, to phrase this another way: the statutes of intestate succession can be found by CLICKING HERE. Now, before we move, let’s focus on what is an heir in Florida Probates. Spouses are heirs !! Does it matter if the spouse of the decedent was only married for 10 seconds? No! 50 years? Nope. Does it matter if the surviving spouse, widow or widower was a nasty person? No. None of that matters. The only thing that matters is whether a spouse signed a PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT or a POSTNUPTIAL AGREEMENT. If you think the marriage was the product of fraud, read THIS. To watch a great, FREE […]