A second method for making sure your estate is a mess is to make your Will incorrectly. This “Part Two” blog will discuss the most important technical requirements for making a Will correctly. Believe it or not, state laws impose requirements to make a valid will. Some are absolute, and failing to comply with...Read More

The most common method of avoiding probate includes creating a trust that holds your assets rather than a will. It is also possible to decrease the quantity of property going through probate by giving gifts to members of your family or other types of beneficiaries before dying. Here are three other ways to avoid probate:...Read More

The short method for making sure your estate is a mess is don’t make a will. This “Part One” blog will discuss not making a will. The next shortest method of making sure your estate is a mess is make the will incorrectly. Part Two of How to Make Sure Your Estate is a Mess...Read More

“Avoiding probate” has become a very popular goal of estate planning. Most people want the distribution of assets at their death to be simple, straightforward, and inexpensive. Even an abbreviated probate procedure in Florida (such as a summary administration) is neither simple, nor straightforward. Most people cannot handle it on their own and, hence, there...Read More

Do I Really Need a Trust? People often ask, “do I need a trust”?  The simple answer is “no.”  You don’t need a trust any more than you need a bank account, or a car, or a will for that matter.  I bet that answer does not help you choose to have a trust or...Read More

Clients have been asking if they need to change their Living Will in the new age of Covid-19. There is a simple answer and more nuanced answer to this question, and it raises some very important issues. The simple answer: You do not need to make changes to your advanced directive for coronavirus. A living...Read More

The easy answer is, not until July 2020. The ability to execute an electronic will takes effect on July 1, 2020. To confuse the issue however, online notarization of documents other than a will became effective on January 1, 2020. The process is very new, expensive, difficult, and, for life plan documents, limited. Choosing to...Read More

Is My Current Power of Attorney Effective? Do not assume that your old power of attorney will be effective. The Florida power of attorney statute changed dramatically in 2011.  Effective on October 1, 2011, the Legislature amended Chapter 709 of the Florida Statutes and completely rewrote the laws regarding powers of attorney.  Among other things,...Read More

Life planning is the thoughtful arrangement of assets and preparation of legal documents to organize your life and direct your affairs according to your values and choices. It allows you and your loved ones to navigate through emergencies and predictable life changes with the least stress, expense, and difficulty possible. The first step in life...Read More

Many times a month I hear stories about people losing all or most of there data due to damaged, lost, or a stolen phone’s.  It seems the most important data we carry with us. With the holidays coming up,  let’s make sure we don’t lose those precious memories along with other data. Lets backup today!...Read More