Search Results: power of attorney

Did you read that great tip in today’s business section?  I’m buying that retail stock before the start of the Xmas season and I’m dumping it on December 26th !

Are you wondering where all of mom or dad’s money and property went after they were living in  Florida and had Florida wills and trusts and always seemed so organized and financially saavy?  Wondering where the Florida trustee put all the trust funds and assets? Did someone have a Florida power of attorney and are you wondering if the attorney in fact mis-used that Florida power of attorney and mis-appropriated Florida property? 

In Florida, trust attorneys, estate administration attorneys, and attorneys who are involved with wills, trusts and estates know that a fiduciary owes a duty of loyalty to those they serve.   A  Florida trustee, a Florida personal representative, even one who is the attorney-in-fact, or “power of attorney” under a Florida power of attorney document, owes a duty of loyalty to those they serve.  For  Florida trustees, the duty is owed to beneficiaries. 

A will lawyer Florida may be needed to help you get your inheritance. Here are the 3 ways to navigate receiving your inheritance. (Hint: one involves hiring your own probate litigator, although that may not be necessary.) What does a will lawyer Florida do? (what do you NEED?) A will lawyer Florida typically deals with the “disposition of assets at death.” One who is knowledgeable about the transfer and receipt of plain, simple, expensive and unique assets and properties at death. Beneficiary rights. Obligations of a trustee or executor. That’s a fancy way of saying one deals with dirt, dollars & death! (For short legal blog on who inherits at death, click that link. It’s free, fast and no “cookies” or data collection.) Wills. (And, of course, such other, so-called, “dispositive vehicles” like a revocable living trust, or pay-n-death or transfer-on-death accounts.) Why? Well, the rules are different for giving property when one dies. During life, right?, I can give my property to whoever I want in any way I choose. But the rules are different when we pass. The rules change when you die Death changes everything, right? There’s the Florida Probate Rules, the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and of course the Probate Code. (For the rules, just go to the Florida Bar website, www.FloridaBar.org, and they are there for free.) Don’t get mad at me ! I didn’t write them or create them. Our legislature did. And those statutes, and those rules, are the guiding light to […]

Sometimes, a homestead almost gives you a “guaranteed” inheritance when a family member passes away. Most Floridians own a homestead worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars. And, normally, sometimes (maybe??) homestead goes to the HEIRS. That’s why so many sons and daughters and spouses hire Alpha-Dog probate litigators. (To try to “get” “theirs”.) Finding an accomplished and successful homestead lawyer who has handled trials and appeals on this unique (weird?) Florida topic can be a challenge. Here are the issues to consider and what to look for. What is homestead and “heirs” Heirs are the spouse and descendants. That means kids, grandchildren, and a spouse. Note: not ALL of them inherit, or inherit EQUALLY. To read more about who is an heir in Florida, simply click this link. See also Florida Probate Code Statute 731.201 (20). Homestead is that one abode, one residence, that a Floridian calls home. You know, where you file your taxes from, where you consider returning each time that you are away. Florida has unique homestead laws when there is no will and, sometimes, even when there is a will or a deed. Or a prenup. So……….don’t assume that someone gets the homestead. Talk to an experienced homestead lawyer in Florida who has actually litigated and appealed this topic. Homestead lawyer Florida So, if you are in a legal dispute in a probate or estate, or maybe a deed, about homestead, what do you need to know to hire some “firepower”? Here are […]

A recent appellate opinion helps you understand what is fiduciary duty Florida. While common in Florida probate and trust cases, this one was about a contract. Who owes you a fiduciary duty Florida? There are three important “legal actors” who you need to know about when considering fiduciary duty Florida. First, there are those who are so-called “official” fiduciaries. Like Trustees, Personal Representatives or executors of estates. And powers of attorney, also called an attorney-in-fact. Those legal actors are, by definition, fiduciaries. They have agreed to serve, and owe duties of loyalty to their principal or beneficiaries. The law is clear. And there can be a LOT of fiduciary duties. They also agree to put the interests of those who they have agreed to serve above their own. There are a LOT of duties for a trustee. Same for a Personal Representative or executor of a Florida probate or estate. A POA = same thing. (even though the Florida laws call a POA an “agent.”) Who else owes you those duties? Working hard…… The 2nd group? Those who are not “per se” fiduciaries, may become one. How? If they accept a role of serving another. If they are given trust and confidence, and they accept that, and act on it. They then owe a duty. Or maybe multiple duties. And, if they screw up, they can be sued for breach or even surcharge. To read free Florida legal blogs about breach, click here. Contracts = no duty But most contractual […]

A Palm Beach Inheritance lawyer may be needed to help you with your inheritance. If you are “contesting” something in a Florida probate or trust, maybe you need a litigator. (Someone who actually handles probate trials + appeals all the time…..NOT just some lawyer who says they “go to court“. ) If you want a lawyer who does more than just “writes letters” demanding your inheritance, and you want a probate litigator, read on. This just may be the best 4 minutes you have spent on your Florida matter. (For more info, you can read free legal commentary and guidance by clicking HERE . ) Palm Beach Inheritance Lawyer = Firepower OK…………..not everyone needs an Alpha Dog, right? Many times, you are going to inherit money from an estate. A Florida probate. Maybe a revocable living trust. So, if you trust your trustee or Personal Representative, you don’t need a Palm Beach Inheritance Lawyer. But……………..what if that person is not sharing information with you? And………..sometimes, things are not breaking your way. Sick and tired of YOUR Personal Representative or Trustee not showing you the books? Or NOT telling you where YOUR money is? What can you do? (For a brief read, free, on whether you need to hire a pitbull or not, read THIS.) Baby Steps OK…………..so there are some basic, simple things which you can do. First of all, you can open a probate. That’s a court proceeding. Why? Because it causes all “interested persons” to play by the […]

Do you really need a lawyer for the Florida Probate that you are involved in? You may not, after all. Find out some secrets from the experts to help you stay informed, up to date, and to receive your inheritance. (Yup, that’s right: it should not be that difficult!) For more perspective on this topic, click HERE. Florida Probate Process Explained Previously, we have written about the whole “estate-probate-inheritance” process. To read more about this topic, you can click here. But, let’s quickly go over some basic, important aspects that you NEED to know. First, if there is no will, then “heirs” inherit through intestacy. This includes the surviving spouse unless he signed a prenup or some waiver of inheritance rights. Second, in an intestate estate, adult children — NOT just minor children– inherit. And maybe even some grandkids. Intestacy is the passing of property from an estate to heirs. It’s a process with its own special rules. Why talk so much about this topic? Because today, lots and lots of people die without a will. Even those who had the money to afford an attorney to write one. It happens all the time. Third, to get your inheritance, you probably need to “open” a probate. Why? Because you probably want two things: first, a “personal representative” appointed to administer the estate; and two, orders from the probate judge that say you inherit. (This is true especially for real estate or homestead. When you go to sell it, the title […]

Knowing when you need to “lawyer up” to get your inheritance may be tricky. After all, you have to balance spending money on a Palm Beach probate lawyer vs. going it alone. Is it worth the money? Inheriting from a Florida Probate If you inherit from a Florida probate, you should expect to get your money within a year. After all, estates are supposed to be “expeditiously” administered. (Read Florida probate law 733.602). Find the assets, pay the last expenses, and distribute everyone’s inheritance. But some people want their own lawyer. Their own advocate or pit bull or “firepower” to stand up and fight. Fight for what? Candidly, in some cases, you don’t need to fight. You need the Florida Probate Code explained to you. The process. The Florida Probate Rules can be read for free online. Heck, you can read all about the Florida probate process online for free. You don’t need a Florida probate lawyer for that. But, if there’s a will contest, or some “contested” matters, you may want your own counsel. When do you need your own Florida probate lawyer? First of all, if you trust the person running the estate, why do you need to pay for a lawyer? The personal representative will have her own lawyer and pay for that lawyer from the estate. But many times, information is with-held. Or things are going nowhere. The “PR” is not disclosing information about the assets, the estate, and what she is doing with YOUR money. […]

Many times, a relative passes away in Florida with a lot of out of state beneficiaries. Do you need a Palm Beach Estate lawyer to get your inheritance? Do you even need to come to Florida? The probate process may be easier than you think to get your inheritance. To learn a lot right away, consider reading the Florida Probate Code. The Florida Probate Process Lots of Floridians pass away each year. Often, family members and beneficiaries are located outside of Florida. “Many of my clients do not live in Florida” says John Pankauski, a Palm Beach estate lawyer who helps clients get their inheritance. “The truth is that you really don’t need your own lawyer if you trust the person running the estate.” That’s what they call the “personal representative” in Florida. Sometimes called an “executor” in other states. In truth, you don’t even need to come to Florida to get your inheritance. And you won’t need to if the estate is run correctly. However, if there are objections or “contested” matters, you may need to testify. Whether you can do that from your home via Zoom, or whether you have to come to Florida depends. It all depends on what you want to do, and what the personal representative is doing –or not doing. Who do you trust? The personal representative, or “PR” for short, is supposed to be a fiduciary. She has fiduciary duties to work for the family and beneficiaries. Part of her duties is to […]