Thank you for your question. Usually, the only person who needs to sign the Petition for Administration is the person requesting to be appointed as the Personal Representative or Executor. In any event, you should not sign any documents without having them reviewed by an attorney and you definitely... View More

My condolences to you and your family. Under Florida law, the original Will should be filed within 10 days after death. Do you have a copy of the Will? Does your stepmom have the original Will? Without a copy of the Will, you don't know if you are entitled to any of your father's assets.... View More

If you are married in Florida your spouse is legally entitled to certain assets such as your Homestead and certain exempt property. Additionally, if you leave less than 30% of your estate to your spouse he can make an election against your estate. You should contact an estate planning attorney for... View More

I would highly suggest that you do not send them the original copy of any documents that you have regarding beneficiary designation. It might be a good idea to hire an attorney to write them and make an official demand for payment according to the beneficiary designation form that you have. All... View More

My condolences to you and your family.

Under Florida law, a Will must be filed 10 days after death. Filing a Will does not mean there has to be a probate administration. I am not sure what you mean when you say "everything is left to the husband/wife." If title to the property is... View More

As the attorney for the personal representative I would also not recommend this action. I know sometimes people are trying to hide money from creditors or the IRS so they avoid getting funds in their names. This of course smells like fraud.

I am sorry about your loss. There are ways to get this done with a small administration by the statute. Who paid the funeral expenses? Check with the clerk of court in the county where you live.

It sounds like there are some misunderstandings about your role and duties as a personal representative. The first thing you should do is reach out to your attorney to get clarification on this issue. If you don't have an attorney you should hire one right away. In the meantime, you should... View More

The insurance proceeds pass according to the designated beneficiary thereby avoiding probate. Of course, if there was some fraud related to the signing of the beneficiary form or if your father was incapacitated at the time the form was signed you might have an argument. Please know that this is a... View More

Firstly, I am glad you are trying to get clarity on the issue. The most important question is whose name is on the title of the property. If the home is titled solely in your dad's name or titled as tenants in common with someone else more than likely a probate case will need to be initiated.... View More

When you say he left the home to his sister was this by Will or Trust? Was the home his homestead? If the home was given by Will then the property would need to go through probate. If the home was his homestead, and if he was not survived by a spouse or minor child then the gift might be valid.... View More

I would not recommend placing a vehicle into a Trust because of liability reasons. If there is an accident involving the vehicle, the injured party might file a lawsuit against the Trust. Also, an insurance company might not want to insure a vehicle titled in the name of a Trust. In Florida, it is... View More