Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog

January 12, 2011

Florida Lesbians in the Workforce, Do they Earn More?

According to an article in the New York Times, lesbians make about 6% more money than heterosexual women when factors like race, education, profession, location, and number of children are accounted for.

One theory is that “straight” women expect to end up with a husband or partner who will be the breadwinners in the family, so are more likely to make career sacrifices or focus their efforts away from the employment market. Other heterosexual married woman will give up their jobs to raise children as is often necessitated by the costs of day care (especially if their husbands earn more than them).

If you are a St. Augustine Lesbian who is in the Florida workplace, you may or may not be making more money than your heterosexual lady friends; either way, estate planning for the money you do make is important. Having a conversation with a St. Augustine Estate Planning Lawyer about your non-traditional family or same-sex partnership will provide you with various estate planning tools to insure that the hard-earned money you do make goes to those people dearest to you.

January 11, 2011

Stealing from your Grandmother’s Trust Fund?

by Patricia Davis

St. Augustine trustors establish a Florida Trust may have numerous objectives in mind. Trust assets can benefit several beneficiaries; a trust may help you avoid the probate process by funding the trust during your lifetime; and Florida trust funds can be managed by professionals. Professional management of the trust is important if the beneficiary is a minor or a mentally incompetent adult, or useful when the beneficiaries are not experienced with investing money or managing property.

In Connecticut, a man who was appointed trustee by a probate court, began to embezzle trust funds from his grandmother’s trust leaving her without enough money to live on. The grandson trustee’s transactions of investments to benefit the trust, were actually in violation of the established rules of the trust. Needless to say, the grandson is no longer trustee, and may be looking at jail time. Florida has laws that can make actions like these a crime against the elderly.

Establishing a Florida Revocable Trust is an important estate planning tool for many people regardless of their net worth. It is however, vital to speak with a St. Augustine Estate Planning Lawyer who can give invaluable advice as to your choice of trustee and successor trustee as well as the various duties, powers and limitations of the trustee.

January 4, 2011

Tax day extended to April 18- This year only

by David M. Goldman

The bonus days come thanks to Emancipation Day, a little-known Washington, D.C., holiday that celebrates the freeing of slaves in the district.

Emancipation Day falls on Sat., April 16, but it is observed in D.C. on Fri., April 15. That prompted the IRS to extend the tax filing deadline to April 18 this year. Under the tax code, filing deadlines can’t fall on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays.

January 4, 2011

Florida Anti-lapse statute and gifts to in-laws

by David M. Goldman

Recently the 3rd DCA in the Florida case of Lorenzo v. Medina ruled that the anti-lapse statute must be strictly construed and that gifts to in-laws are not saved and lapse unlike a gift to a close family member.

This means a gift to a sister-in-law who predeceases the testator is not honored while a gift to a predeceased sister would go to her children. If you are involved with trying to save assets for the families of non-relatives you should talk with a Florida Estate Planning Lawyer how simple changes to your Florida Will or Florida Revocable Trust can ensure that your intentions are carried out.

January 4, 2011

Flordia has a Pet Trust Statute

by Patricia Davis

Florida pet lovers are part of the estimated 71.4 million households that have at least one pet. according to an article published in the Chicago Sun-Times. Jacksonville animal lovers spend lots of time and money caring for their pets, but what happens to these beloved creatures when their owner passes away?

If you have not made an arrangement with a family member or friend your pet may end up in an animal shelter or worse. People create Florida Wills to provide for their families and there is a growing trend to create pet trusts. Remember the very wealthy Leona Helmslely, she left millions to care for her maltese poodle. Make arrangements by speaking with a Pet Trust Attorney, so the person you designate to take your dog or cat or other animal, will have the adequate funds to look after your pet.

If you love and cherish your dogs, cats and pets than make sure they are cared for should you pass away before them. The Florida Trust Code has provided for a pet trust which allows you to ensure that your animal alive during your lifetime is taken care of even after you are gone. If you want to discuss having a trust created to ensure that you have left appropriate funds for the future care of your beloved pet, call a Jacksonville Estate Planning Firm.

January 3, 2011

What Happens if I Die in Florida without a Will

by Patricia Davis

If you live in Ponte Vedra and die before you have made your Florida Will, you have died “intestate”. What this means is that your intentions as to who will inherit what from you, and who will be appointed Personal Representative of your estate is now determined by the state of Florida.

If you do not seek out a Ponte Vedra Estate Planning Firm about having your will made prior to your death, you leave your family, friends and charitable organizations at a disadvantage. Any arrangement or understanding you may have had with those who were to benefit from your property and assets, will now be subject to the Florida Intestate Succession Statute. This Florida law strictly dictates who is to receive the property of the decedent (the one who recently died). Good intentions mean nothing in Florida without a valid Florida Will.

Some disadvantages of dying intestate are:

December 31, 2010

New Year’s Resolution – Prepare your Will

by Patricia Davis

Prepare your Will! It’s easy, it’s affordable and it doesn’t involve giving up anything sweet.

We are all guilty of procrastinating when it comes to having our Florida Will prepared, make this a priority for 2011. Once you make the decision, you will be able to rest assured that when you pass (hopefully many years from now), your family will be provided for according to the provisions you have made.

If you die without a valid will you are said to have died “intestate”, and the

December 27, 2010

GST Loop Hole- Must Act before 12/31/10 to take advantage of this.

by David M. Goldman

The Tulsa Estate Planning Blog reported that The 2010 Tax Relief Act creates a unique opportunity to make gifts through December 31, 2010 that are not subject to the generation-skipping transfer tax. This is because, under the new law, the tax rate is zero for any generation-skipping transfer made in 2010. Beginning January 1, 2011, the tax rate for these transfers will be 35%. In two short years the rate goes back to 55%.

Money can be taken from an existing multigenerational trust, declared subject to the 2010 GST tax, and deposited in a new trust for grandkids’ benefit, with the GST tax now pre-paid at a 0% rate.

Under the tax deal, each person’s lifetime exemption from gift, estate and GST tax will be “unified” at a hefty $5 million in 2011 and 2012.

December 23, 2010

Be Informed Before Retaining a Probate Attorney

by Patricia Davis

A Florida Probate Attorney was suspended from practicing law by the Florida Supreme Court. The attorney was said to be causing great public harm by a pattern of “obtaining fees, controlling assets, enforcing individuals to ‘pay him’ before he would resign as trustee of several trusts”. The attorney has also been the subject of several pending disciplinary cases involving inappropriate handling of trust accounts and failing to move money from his account into a guardianship account.

The Florida Bar governs attorney behavior and law practice. An attorney has a code of ethical behavior in which he must adhere to in his representation of clients. There are specific rules which regulate trust accounts and accounting procedures, and Orange Park Probate Attorneys must act in accordance with these rules, otherwise, they are in violation of the Florida Bar.

Whatever reason has led you to retain an Orange Park or Jacksonville Florida Attorney, it is important to do your homework. One of the most reliable ways to find an attorney is through personal referral. Ask your family and friends if they know of or have used an attorney in your area. Access the internet to view a law firm’s web site and blog pages. These sites often have informative articles which will provide you with background information about your legal issue.

December 15, 2010

Gun Trust Lawyer & Class 3 Firearms Trusts

by David M. Goldman

Florida Gun Trusts are not the same as a standard Revocable or Living Trust.

We are getting more and more so called Gun Trusts that have been prepared by lawyers in Florida and other states that are nothing more than a traditional revocable trust with a few definitions thrown in to discuss the National Firearms Act.

The biggest problem with these trust is that they do not protect your family in the event you die or become incapacitated. If your trust talks about income and real estate or does not seem to be specific for firearms, you may want to have it reviewed by a Gun Trust Lawyer to see if your trust instructs your family or friends to break the law and subject themselves to the penalties of the NFA.