Notables

Effective on July 1, 2021, the Florida legislature expanded its slayer statutes, to now include provisions to disinherit those persons who “abuse, neglect, exploit, or commit aggravated manslaughter” against an elderly or disabled person. See Fla. Stat. 733.303, 732.8031, and 736.1104. 

If the person in question has been convicted by a court of abuse, neglect, exploitation, or aggravated manslaughter against the decedent, this creates a “rebuttable presumption” in favor of disinheritance. …

Florida Statute 732.502 requires the following for a will to be valid:

Execution of wills.—Every will must be in writing and executed as follows:

(1)(a) Testator’s signature.—

1. The testator must sign the will at the end; or

2. The testator’s name must be subscribed at the end of the will by some other person in the testator’s presence and by the testator’s direction….

Electronic wills were authorized when the Florida Senate voted unanimously on HB 409, and the bill was subsequently signed into law.  This new legislation can be found in Fla. Stat. 732.521 through 732.525.

This is a big change in Florida law, because in addition to having the requisite testamentary capacity, Florida traditionally required strict compliance with the will execution rules, particularly Fla….

If a Will clearly explains your wishes upon your death, does it matter if it is typed or if it is in your own handwriting? What if a Will is in a decedent’s own handwriting?  These nuances are very important, and these nuances affect the admissibility of the Will in Florida.

One requirement in serving as a guardian for a ward, particularly a guardian of the property, is the annual filing of an accounting.  Annual guardianship accountings are required pursuant to Fla. Stat. 744.3678 and Fla. Prob. R. 5.695.  The Rules also set forth the requirements for the contents of the guardianship accounting and provide a form for same as part of the Rules. …

Ancillary probate occurs in a situation when a decedent dies leaving real estate and or other personal property in a state other than their state of residence.

The primary, main, or domiciliary probate will take place in the state in which the decedent resided at the time of his or her death.

What happens to a beneficiary’s share under a Will if he or she dies before the probate administration is concluded?

If the Will named that beneficiary, there may be provisions for his or her succession, including whether there was a required survival period.  If so, then the beneficiary’s share may well be given to someone else pursuant to the Will….

As more and more middle-aged children are caring for their elderly parents, their roles include managing and dividing finances.  This may be more pronounced in the state of Florida in light of the great elderly population.

This may lead to issues with respect to estate planning, especially if the elderly parent has diminished mental capacity, and relies on an adult child for decision making. …

Mobile games and video games are popular and even in-game purchases have become nearly commonplace.  You may wonder what happens to these accounts and these purchases after death. 

A patent which was applied for in 2019 by Tencent Holdings has been recently granted.  This patent, among other things, deals with the inheritance of digital assets. …

Short answer? No. But there are exceptions, of course.

Death benefits which are payable under your life insurance are not considered estate assets. This means they will not be distributed pursuant to your last Will. 

This may mean that, if you are not careful, your life insurance proceeds may go to the wrong people….