Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog

Today George Steinbrenner, New York Yankees owner, died of a heart attack in Tampa Florida. The Yankees are valued at more than 1.6 billion dollars and have been run by his sons Hal and Hank for almost 2 years. Steinbrenner's estate at the time of his death is estimated to be worth 1.15 billion.

We will learn more about his fortune and how he planned his estate in the next few weeks but The timing of Steinbrenner's death could exempt heirs from estate tax like the other three billionaires who have died in 2010.

Steinbrenner moved to Floirda where there is no state estate tax as compared to NY which could have taxed his estate more than 16% or more than 160 million dollars.

Florida Estate Settlement is the process of gathering the assets of an estate and distributing them to the creditors and beneficiaries of the estate. In Florida this process is called a probate and generally requires the use of a Florida Probate Lawyer.

Most probate lawyers charge a percentage of the estate assets to handle the legal work involved. As Florida Estate Settlements get larger a percentage arrangement can become very expensive.

There is a wide range of fees charged for Florida Probate Administration and the Settlement of an estate. It is important to understand the nature and amount of assets and creditors to give a fair estimate of what a reasonable fee for a Florida probate should be.

Before you talk with a Florida Probate Attorney, you should gather as much information as possible. This will help them understand what steps will be necessary to administer the estate in question.

The Florida Bar has released consumer information on Florida Probate where they describe many of the issues related to Probate in Florida. They discuss the following:

1. WHAT IS PROBATE?
2. WHAT ARE PROBATE ASSETS?
3. WHY IS PROBATE NECESSARY?
4. WHAT IS A WILL?
5. WHAT HAPPENS TO PROBATE ASSETS IF THERE IS NO WILL?
6. WHO IS INVOLVED IN THE PROBATE PROCESS?
7. WHERE ARE PROBATE PAPERS FILED?
8. WHO SUPERVISES THE PROBATE ADMINISTRATION?
9. WHAT IS A PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE, AND WHAT DOES THE PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE DO?
10. WHO CAN BE A PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE?
11. WHO HAS PREFERENCE TO BE PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE?
12. WHY DOES THE PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE NEED AN ATTORNEY?
13. HOW ARE ESTATE CREDITORS HANDLED?
14. HOW IS THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE ("IRS") INVOLVED?
15. HOW IS THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE INVOLVED?
16. WHAT RIGHTS DO THE SURVIVING FAMILY HAVE IN THE PROBATE ESTATE?
17. WHAT RIGHTS DO OTHER POTENTIAL BENEFICIARIES (OTHER THAN THE SURVIVING SPOUSE AND CHILDREN UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES) HAVE IN THE PROBATE ESTATE?
18. HOW LONG DOES PROBATE TAKE?
19. HOW ARE FEES DETERMINED IN PROBATE?
20. WHAT ALTERNATIVES ARE AVAILABLE TO FORMAL ADMINISTRATION?
21. WHAT IF THERE IS A REVOCABLE TRUST?

Attorney-in-Fact:

The person selected to have the authority to act on the behalf of a principal. An attorney-in-fact can be any adult that the principal selects. (He or she need not be a Florida lawyer.) Typically, people appoint an attorney-in-fact in a power-of attorney, granting the attorney-in-fact the power to transact business (enter into agreements, contracts, make transfers of property, etc.) in accordance with the power-of-attorney. The authority of the attorney-in-fact cannot last beyond the life of the principal. In most cases a power of attorney expires if the principal becomes disabled or incapicated. Florida allows for a Durable Power of Attorney that can become effective upon a disability, an occurrence of an event, or at the time that the document is signed. Florida law provides that a durable power of attorney is not impacted by a persons subsequently disability. The agent can also use this power to help the principal qualify for Florida Medicaid.

Legally Incapacitated Person: A person who has been determined by a court as not capable of handling his or her personal and financial affairs.

A Florida Durable Power of Attorney, Florida Trust, Florida Guardianship, Florida Designation of Health Care Surrogate all deal with Legally Incapacitated persons.

One may not be the Personal Representative, Agent, or Trustee if they are Legally Incapacitated.

Fiduciary: This refers to a person (or entity) that serves in a representative capacity. Personal representatives, trustees, guardians, conservators, and agents under powers of attorney are all fiduciaries. A fiduciary stands in a position of confidence and trust with respect to each heir, devisee, and/or beneficiary. They are subject to a responsibility to act in the best interests of the person that they are serving on behalf of and can be sued if they act improperly.

Attorney-in-Fact:

The person selected to have the authority to act on the behalf of a principal. An attorney-in-fact can be any adult that the principal selects. (He or she need not be a Florida lawyer.) Typically, people appoint an attorney-in-fact in a power-of attorney, granting the attorney-in-fact the power to transact business (enter into agreements, contracts, make transfers of property, etc.) in accordance with the power-of-attorney. The authority of the attorney-in-fact cannot last beyond the life of the principal. In most cases a power of attorney expires if the principal becomes disabled or incapacitated. Florida allows for a Durable Power of Attorney that can become effective upon a disability, an occurrence of an event, or at the time that the document is signed. Florida law provides that a durable power of attorney is not impacted by a persons subsequently disability. The agent can also use this power to help the principal qualify for Florida Medicaid.