When you die, someone has to know hot to determine or what the details of your financial life are
It is important to make a comprehensive list of assets, liabilities, life insurance policies, power of attorney, Florida will, credit cards, details of bank accounts and all other important financial information.
The problem is that once you pass away, an executor or personal representative has to go through all of your document to figure out where assets may be located.
In Florida there are limitations on Pet Trusts and the courts would likely find that $12 Million for a dog would be excessive and strike all or part of the trust.
Leona Helmsley’s Dog was left a $12 Million dollar trust fund. In addition the Maltese, named Trouble will be buried alongside her and her late husband in a mausoleum. Leona also left 3 Million for the perpetual care of the mausoleum.
While the press and blogs are making a big deal over the dog getting $12 million, everyone fails to see the costs she is incurring because of probate. She left the majority of her money and property (rumored to be in excess of 1 billion dollars) to a Family charitable trust. The legal fees on handling this administration could be in excess of $60 Million dollars. If she would have put this money in a Revocable Trust or Living Trust there would be no probate fees to transfer the Billion dollars to the charity.
Recently the Florida statutes changed to allow for arbitration clauses in Florida Revocable Trust Agreements. When including an arbitration clause in a Florida Revocable Trust one needs to make sure the arbitration clause will be enforceable.
Below are some issues with arbitration clauses in Florida that need to be considered whether used for Florida Business Contracts, Transactions in Florida, or Florida revocable trusts. Luckily the US Supreme Court has ruled that if an arbitration clause is invalid, the clause can be removed from the agreement and the underlying agreement can still be valid.
Florida Arbitration Clauses
An agreement to arbitrate, or a provision in a contract providing for the arbitration of disputes, is valid, enforceable, and irrevocable without regard to the justiciable character of the controversy. The only questions for a court to determine when looking to see whether an arbitration clause is enforceable are:
1. Whether the agreement that contains the arbitration clause is valid?
2. Whether the parties have a valid arbitration agreement;
3. Whether an arbitrable issue exists; and
4. Whether the right to arbitrate has been waived.
If you live in a Jacksonville or another city in Florida where the Chief law Enforcement Officer (CLEO) will not or easily sign a Form 4, there are several solutions.
Title II Firearms (sold by Class 3 SOT dealers) include suppressors, , short barrel rifles, machine guns, and other destructive devices.
The most common solution is to create a revocable trust to hold title to the firearm or class 3 items you desire to purchase. There can be many problems with a typical revocable trust and firearms. Its best to use a Firearms Trust or NFA Gun Trust
A Gun Trust, Firearms Trust, Limited Liability Company, or Florida S Corporation is a legal entity established under state law. For NFA purposes many individuals prefer the a Revocable Trust over a corporation or LLC because it is less expensive to operate and provides privacy. Florida Business entities typically cost $150 a year for the state filings in addition to the cost of a CPA to prepare and file the federal filings. In addition, Florida Trusts don’t require any disclosure or public filings. The lack of any required filings means, the only people who know the terms of the trust are those you choose to tell.
Although most Florida Revocable or Living Trusts can hold firearms or other class 3 items, many are not properly setup to deal with the issues involving firearms and other items which are regulated by the National Firearms Act (NFA). If the NFA is violated, the owners are subject to criminal penalties, substantial fines, and forfeiture of not only the class 3 items in question but all firearms in the possession or ownership. ($250,000 penalty, 10 years in prison, and forfeiture of items)
The gun or firearms trust must give the Trustee instructions and special powers so that they can legally manage for unplanned events. Weapons and other assets in a Firearms Trust can not be distributed like other assets upon the death or incapacity of the person who placed the items in the trust(The Grantor or Settlor).
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In Jacksonville or other cities in Florida, there are many advantages to using a Revocable Living Trust or Florida Land Trust to hold title to real estate. Dyches Broddiford has an interesting article dealing with many of these issues.
In summary a real estate trust provides:
– Privacy for the owners;
This article has many interesting provisions that have been found in wills, but more common today are provisions dealing with trusts for pets.
Pet trusts are quickly becoming more common. Around 20 percent of pet owners include their pets in their wills. Florida have specific rules on how one can leave money or provide for their pets after their death. After years of resistance, more states are making it easier to set up a trust for a pet. A guardian is appointed to care for the animal and a trustee to take care of the finances.
People can be very detailed in planning their own funerals, down to requesting specific songs and Bible verses. “It’s less of a taboo topic,” said Leanna Hamill, an attorney from Hingham, Mass. “People talk about it more.”
Here is a summary of an interesting article on Florida Living Trusts:
1) Florida Estate Planning To Avoid Probate Costs. A Florida living trusts can help eliminate the cost and delay of probate.
2) What About Taxes And Asset Protection In My Florida Living Trust. No Tax Benefit. Florida living trusts do not provide any tax benefits at all. All income from the trust passes through to the personal or joint tax returns of the Beneficiaries. No Asset Protection. Although Florida Living trusts can provide some asset protection in the event of a divorce, Florida living trusts do not protect assets from creditors or judgment lawsuits. If you personally own an asset, and if that asset is not protected or legally sheltered, and if you “lose in court”, then the litigating party or plaintiff will likely obtain a judgment order to reach-in to your living trust and legally remove the target asset.
3) Pick Your Trustee And Successor Trustee. If you want to personally direct your Florida living trust business, then as grantor or settler you can appoint yourself as the initial Trustee. Make sure to instruct for a successor Trustee who is the person, or institution (like a bank or law firm) who will have the actual job of distributing the assets according to your instructions, and complying with all filing and statutory requirements under Florida State law.
4) You’ve Got To Hire An Estate Planning Attorney – It’s The Law. Reviewing assets, preparing a revocable Florida living trust for inheritance matters, and entering into a legal service contract requires that the preparer be a Florida State bar certified attorney.
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Florida Estate Planning Lawyers often build a Florida estate plan around two basic strategies: The first takes advantage of the unified credit. (This credit eliminates the estate tax on the first $2 million, 2007 and 2008, this credit rises to $3.5 million in 2009. There is no estate tax in 2010 (But there are taxes in the increase in basis – watch out for highly appreciated assets). In 2011, the estate tax credit falls to $1 million.) By using an A/B or two- trust arrangement (often called A/B Trust, or a marital trust and family trust), a Husband and Wife can each avoid taxes on their estate tax credit based upon the year of their death. Next, the Husband and Wife plans usually take advantage of the marital deduction, which means zero estate taxes when one of them passes on.
The traditional estate plan that we see in every state. If you have a plan it is probably similar to what is described above. The problem with this plan is that in some cases it only delays the IRS from collecting their money until the death of the second spouse.
Often by looking at a complete financial picture of the Husband and Wife as well as their family tree and desires, a custom estate plan can be created that will potentially eliminate one’s estate taxes (depending on the current law and future changes).
Clients often ask Estate Planning Attorney’sfor a Florida will or a Florida Living Trust. The seldom ask for a will and a trust even though in most cases this is what they need. Clients who want to skip probate and avoid the fees and delays associated with establishing and administrating a probate in Florida often request a Florida Living or Revocable trust. One of the big problems with creating a revocable living trust is that most people never fund them. In Florida, a living trust must be funded prior to the death of the grantor or it is not in existence.
The primary purpose of having a valid Florida Will along with the Florida Living Trust is that if the Trust is not in existence, the decedents Will will determine how the assets are distributed. The will often directs that any remaining assets be placed in the trust and the trust will determine how the assets are distributed. Often the will does not exist, so the will must specify how the assets should be distributed in case the trust doesn’t exist.
When you create a trust or trust/will combination please discuss what will happen if the trust is not funded, or you revoke the trust during your life.
Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog