For Florida residents one of the main purposes of estate planning is to preserve their hard-earned assets for posterity. A will is a legally recognized way of communicating to the world the last wishes and desires of a resident for his or her assets and properties after death. It may also be a way for many Florida residents to financially secure the future of their dependents after death. To be valid in Florida a Read More
MAKING BUSINESS VALUATION A PART OF ESTATE PLANNING
For business owners, knowing the value of their business is important. If the owner is looking to sell the business they naturally hope for a high valuation. In other cases, a high valuation can secure better insurance policies and bigger loans at lower interest rates. How a business is valued will often be influenced by the purpose of the valuation. For example, if one partner wants to buy out another, he or she Read More
TRUSTS ENABLE A TIMELY AND ORDERLY DISTRIBUTION OF ASSETS
Many people in Florida have a will that specifies how they wish to pass on their estate to their heirs. However, not many people are aware that a will does not have provisions for how and when the assets in the estate are to be used by the heirs. Therefore, if a person wants to avoid such a situation, a trust is probably a much better choice. By creating a trust, an estate holder can have control over the estate, Read More
HOW HIGH-ASSET RESIDENTS CAN AVOID ESTATE-PLANNING ERRORS
Many Floridians have been able to amass considerable assets and properties during their lifetimes. Some of them plan to leave this wealth with their children and want to do so without legal complications that would unnecessarily split the assets, diminish their value or in other ways cost their heirs. To avoid these problems, they must have thorough estate plans in place before they die. Even knowing this basic fact, Read More
HELPING FLORIDIANS MAKE SENSE OF PROBATE LITIGATION
The death of a loved one is difficult enough for family and friends; it should not be tainted by unnecessary litigation. However, just that often happens when Floridians fail to establish an estate plan. Our Miami-based law firm has helped numerous Florida residents make sense of this typically challenging and confusing situation through compassionate, but effective, probate litigation. Since 1992, our experienced Read More
THE BENEFITS AND BASICS OF A LIVING WILL
Life can be unexpected at times. Although everything may seem in place and secure, there are unfortunately instances that can severely and negatively impact a person's life, such as a tragic accident or sudden illness. In situations such as these, people may still want to have their wishes fulfilled even though they may not directly be able to communicate them at the time. One way to help ensure this happens is Read More
SEEKING HELP WITH ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE TRUST
When deciding how to handle many future and even post-life decisions, planning is vital. However, there is no "one size fits all" approach to handling things like money. In our previous blog post, we discussed how trusts have become an important part of a comprehensive estate plan. Yet, a logical follow up question may be, what type of trust is right for my situation? There are a number of different types of trusts Read More
A TRUST IS OFTEN AN INTEGRAL PART OF AN ESTATE PLAN
Estate planning documents are frequently used to establish a trust. This is a commonly used step by residents of Florida and across the country to keep assets out of probate and the public eye when an individual has passed on. If an estate ends up in probate, a state may become responsible for the distribution to heirs. A legal or financial expert often handles setting up a trust. This may help to ensure that the Read More
CHANGING A WILL
Florida law states that a will can be used to determine how a person's property should be divided after their death. People often write a will long before they expect to need it. This is done as a precaution to make sure that their property is taken care of in case of an emergency. However, as time passes, circumstances change, and those changes may be reflected in such a will. There are several reasons to change a Read More
ESTATE PLANNING FOR FLORIDA NEWLYWEDS
While often associated with long-married couples, estate planning can be equally if not more beneficial to couples who just started their marriage. In this way, newlyweds can dictate the terms of their incipient estate as it grows and not suffer the devastation that often accompanies legal surprises in the wake of an unexpected death. For example, one of the first things a newly married couple can do is to ensure Read More
