Search Results: heirs

There is a great article in this weekend’s Wall Street Journal, www.wsj.com, about marrying family wealth.  At our West Palm Beach probate law firm, we deal with a number of Palm Beach family trusts and there is inevitably an in-law or outlaw who is new to money.   How heirs and beneficiaries deal with family wealth in Palm Beach is one thing…..how their boyfriends, girlfriends, 2nd and 3rd husbands and wives deal with your Palm Beach estate plan is another. Be careful and thoughtful when creating your Palm Beach trust or estate plan. 

If you deal with wealthy Palm Beachers or retired executives who move to Palm Beach Gardens or Jupiter, you may want to subscribe to Barron’s financial publication. www.barrons.com.   Each quarter, Barrons has a piece on family wealth, called Penta.  Penta deals with personal & financial issues for families with money.  So, if you are a Palm Beach probate lawyer who has an estate planning practice, or are a CPA or wealth advisor on PGA Blvd or Royal Palm Way, you may want to check out Barron’s.   If nothing else, I’m sure that your Palm Beach beneficiaries, clients and heirs will appreciate a copy of recent articles.  Many include topics about estate planning, wills, trusts, succession planning and dealing with transferring family wealth.  …. something a lot of Palm Beach clients can use insight on.

A 2 day will contest trial set for May 19 and 20th in the Delray Beach Probate Court has been postponed.  Heirs were attacking a will of a wealthy woman from Boca Raton who left all her money to charity.  I pushed the will challenge case to trial, and survived three attempts by other probate lawyers in Delray Beach Probate Court to delay…..until the last one.

Can  you re open a Ft. Lauderdale lawsuit which is 6 years old?  A Palm Beach lawfirm wanted to re open a lawsuit regarding a Florida charging lien issue.  The Guardians objected and sought a write of prohibition–asking Palm Beach’s appellate court to prohibit the trial court in Ft. Lauderdale from taking action.  Although this is not a probate case, Palm Beach heirs and those involved in a Palm Beach probate may want to read this: considering that it is very common that Palm Beach estates get closed “administratively” and sometimes Palm Beach probate lawyers need to re-open estates.

Actor Jason Patric is involved in “family litigation.” Check out this LA Times article about actor Jason Patric and his legal battle over a child who was conceived with sperm he donated.   Who does a child created by artificial insemination inherit from? This is what some probate and estate lawyers refer to as the “new biology.”

In Palm Beach probate litigation, many probate lawyers from Palm Beach Gardens to Ft. Lauderdale know that getting attorneys fees is an IMPORTANT & VALUABLE sub-issue.  In other words, while you are probating the Palm Beach estate, or involved in a will contest, don’t just focus on the undue influence, or joint bank accounts:  don’t forget the probate attorneys fees. Attorneys fees in probate cases can be sizable. And someone is going to pay.   That’s because of the fee shifting statutes found in the Florida Probate Code & the Florida Trust Code.  A recent case (not a probate case) reminds Palm Beach heirs & beneficiaries about important aspects of fee hearings.  If you are involved in a Palm Beach probate, or an inheritance lawsuit, you may want to read this.

Palm Beach is not the only place for high dollar probate litigation. Where else can a daughter sue a mother over $800,000 in gifts and a family trust and a promised gift for a house.  Massachusetts  …. Sort of. This is a case where a daughter and her husband sued her mom because they claim mom was supposed to make a gift of $800,000 to them. This trust lawsuit was in federal court in Massachusetts and was dismissed. Family members and heirs at law in Palm Beach may want to read this recent case signed April 9, 2014.

Everyone who has seen a television show or Hollywood movie about courtroom drama knows that there are rules of evidence.  For Palm Beach estate litigation law firms, Chapter 90 of the Florida Statutes, the Florida Evidence Code, is the guiding light.  You have to do the little things: like move the original document into evidence —not a copy.  If you are involved in a Palm Beach or Ft. Lauderdale estate dispute, you might want to read this short legal opinion issued yesterday from the Palm Beach Appeals Court. 

A recent Florida Supreme Court probate case demonstrates why writing your own will on a form may not make a lot of sense.  In Palm Beach probate circles, I’ve started to see more “do it yourself” wills or “internet” wills being used.  This is a strong case for paying a few bucks to go to a Palm Beach estate planning attorney to get a Florida will — and to get it done right.  In this case, a Florida will failed to distribute an inheritance received after the will was signed, which may have been un-intended.   For estate planning clients who want a simple will, this could happen to you…………

Everyone knows that the discovery process is permitted in Palm Beach estate litigation by the Florida Probate Rules and also the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.  One of the great privileges or protections of Florida law for heirs and family members who are involved in a Palm Beach inheritance lawsuit is the attorney client privilege. You are not required to produce or disclose communications you have with your estate litigator: no matter how much the other side wants your information.  It’s confidential & privileged.   For those estate or trust beneficiaries involved in a probate lawsuit in Palm Beach Gardens or Delray Beach, you may want to read this March 28, 2014 opinion from Florida’s 5th District Court of Appeal.