Is Equal Fair with Estate Planning? Most of our clients want to treat their children fairly and equally. Splitting assets equally among the children may be easy, but is it fair? When dividing assets, it is often important to determine the needs of the kids as well as what you…
There have been many reports of unintended consequences related to the use of online wills over the past few years. In fact, I have written about many of these issues on this blog. It is important for individuals to understand that there is a difference between a document and a…
How a Community Property Trust Can Save Tens or Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Capital Gains Taxes Community property trusts can save your clients tens of thousands of dollars in capital gains taxes, and that is just one of their many benefits. This lesser-known strategy is not necessarily the…
A common question our Jacksonville Homestead Lawyers receive is “When A Spouse Dies, Does The House Automatically Transfer To You?” One of the more common Florida probate questions our clients ask the Jacksonville homestead lawyers at The Law Office of David M. Goldman PLLC is whether a house automatically transfers…
Florida Living Trusts are often the cornerstone of a great estate plan and provide many of our top estate planning clients benefits. Here are a few of the best or most important things that everyone should know about living trusts. In many situations, an asset protection trust can be used…
One of the best tools estate planning attorneys in Jacksonville utilize for their clients is the Florida revocable trust. The revocable trust is also known as a living trust. A revocable trust has many benefits including the ability to help individuals avoid probate. However, many people do not realize that…
Every trustee of a Florida Trust may have a fundamental duty to keep the trust’s beneficiaries informed of the administration of the trust. Florida Statute Section 763.0813 provides that a trustee must keep the qualified beneficiaries of the trust “reasonably informed of the trust and its administration.” The statutes do…
For a trust to be legally valid, it must have six elements. One of these required elements is that the settlor of the trust, or the person that creates the trust, must intend to create the trust. For a court to recognize this element, there must be a manifestation of…
Florida Trust Code & the Florida Long Arm Statute There are many estate planning benefits for creating a revocable or irrevocable trust in Florida. Trusts can help our Jacksonville clients avoid probate, efficiently manage assets, save money on estate taxes, and protect assets. A person can create a trust in…
One of the most forgotten assets, or even a beneficiary, in estate planning is a person’s pet. Many clients have dogs and cats that are close members of the family and need a way to be taken care of after the owner passes. With a pet trust, a person may…