Florida Probate and Trust Administration
Legal guidance from a Jacksonville area lawyer
Every Florida estate must be administered one way or another. As the personal representative or administrator of an estate, you must—
- Determine the assets owned by or payable to the estate
- Determine what the estate owes to creditors
- Establish the assets owned by the estate
- Timely pay the estate's debts, taxes and administration costs
- Distribute estate assets to the beneficiaries
The personal representative of an estate needs appropriate legal representation to help you protect the wishes of the deceased, the value of the estate and the rights of the beneficiaries. The personal representative can be held personally liable for failure to properly administer the estate.
Probate administration
If you believe that you have been designated as the personal representative of a deceased person's will, your duties include—
- Locating the will and filing it in probate court
- Petitioning the court to be confirmed as personal representative
- Notifying all interested persons
- Obtaining court permission to pay support to the family (if needed)
- Publishing a Notice to Creditors in the newspaper
- Preparing a complete inventory of the estate assets
- Objecting to any invalid claims against the estate
- Paying all valid claims
- Preparing detailed final accounting of the estate
- Distributing the estate to beneficiaries
- Preparing a Report of Final Distribution
Ancillary probate
If an out-of-state resident dies while owning real estate in Florida, probate may be required to pass the Florida property to the beneficiaries. This is called ancillary probate.
Trust administration
When a person creates a living trust, that person is typically the trustee. After the person's incapacity or death, the successor trustee takes over. A successor trustee must—
- Preserve and protect the trust assets
- Impartially administer the trust in the best interests of the beneficiaries
- Invest the trust property productively and prudently
- Keep trust assets separate from personal assets
- Provide periodic accountings to the beneficiaries
- Avoid conflicts of interest and self-dealing
- File tax returns and pay any tax due
- Distribute trust income
- Handle trust expenses
Trust administration duties can be overwhelming, even if you have financial experience. Todd Watson helps you focus on your essential fiduciary obligations.
Get legal support with estate administration from a Jacksonville lawyer
Todd Watson is an elder law attorney who works proactively with you to avoid the need for estate litigation, including will contests and trust controversies. For a free phone appointment with an estate administration lawyer in Jacksonville, contact Todd Watson, Attorney at Law, P.L.
