Every individual who dies in Florida is deemed to have an estate plan. The estate plan is either one chosen by the decedent or one chosen by the State of Florida and known as the Florida Intestacy Statute. The Florida Statute applies to estates of individuals who die without a will and provides the manner in which property passes, the manner for determining heirs and their share as well as many other highly personal matters. 

Simple Wills

A Will is not effective until you pass away. However, a valid Will facilitates many matters that may arise after the death of the individual. A will only governs the disposition of the assets of a person that are subject to probate administration. A simple Will provides a mechanism for determining heirs, distributing property, creating trusts where appropriate, nominating guardians, trustees and personal representatives. 

Although Wills that have been prepared in states other than Florida might be valid for probate in Florida, there might be provisions in the out-of-state Wills that would be ineffective. Often the affidavit, which might conform with the laws of states other than Florida, does not conform with the self-proving affidavit requirements provided for in Florida law. If you have a Will that was not prepared pursuant to Florida law it would be wise to have your will reviewed by a Florida estate planning attorney to determine the validity of your Will and the validity of each of the provisions of the Will in accordance with Florida law. 

There are technical requirements that must be met in order for a Will to be valid in Florida. Therefore, it is important that your Will be prepared by an attorney familiar with the requirements for Wills in Florida. Additionally, because even persons with relatively small estates may have complex issues, it is advisable that the Will be prepared by an attorney who limits his or her practice to Wills, Trusts and Estates. 

Complex Wills 

There are various factors that create a need for a more complex Will. Among those are the nature of the family structure, the size and type of assets involved, the need to create various trusts, as well as estate tax planning where necessary. A significant number of issues arise if your estate exceeds $1,000,000.00 in value after consideration of all assets including, homes, investment assets, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, business interests as well as a whole host of other assets. In situations such as these it may be wise to include provisions for testamentary trusts to provide for minor children, a second spouse, elderly parents or to plan for the minimization of the Federal estate tax impact. In these situations your Will should be prepared with the assistance of an attorney familiar with the Federal estate tax and experienced in advising clients in ways to limit your exposure to Federal estate taxes.