A surcharge action in Florida is a legal action that may be brought against a personal representative when there are allegations that the personal representative has breached his fiduciary duty in order to impose personal liability on a personal representative.
In the United States, the rights of trust beneficiaries are typically governed by state law. Florida has adopted the Uniform Trust Code (U.T.C.), which governs the administration of trusts in Florida as well as duties and rights of trustees and beneficiaries.
A Last Will and Testament is a legal document that allows you to decide how to distribute your assets after your passing. A Will contains the definition of assets, the names of beneficiaries, and sometimes includes guardianship designations and burial instructions. A Will also appoints an executor, or personal representative, of the will. A personal representative is someone who will pay remaining taxes after your passing and make sure the Will is being executed correctly and in accordance with your wishes.
A living will is a legally binding document that explains an individual’s personal choices about end-of-life medical care in cases where they become incapacitated and can no longer make decisions for themselves. For example, the living will would state whether an individual would want to be kept alive through life support or whether they would not like to receive any life support, including artificial nutrition and hydration.
A trust is an agreement between a settlor and a trustee, which directs the trustee to hold the settlor’s assets for the benefit of the settlor’s beneficiaries. In simple terms, an individual will establish a trust to hold their assets for their beneficiaries. The person establishing the trust, or the settlor, can create a trust agreement where he is both the settlor and the trustee and place all of his assets in the trust.
Probate is a court process that is used to determine the authenticity of a will as well as to administer the estate of the deceased individual. Through probate, the court supervises the payment of all the debts of the decedent to his creditors. Subsequently, the court administers the distribution of the assets of the estate to its beneficiaries in accordance with the will of the decedent. In case of an absence of the will, the court will arrange the asset distribution according to the laws of intestacy of the applicable state.
Tortious Interference with an Expected Inheritance occurs when someone succeeds at manipulating the assets of the decedent. In such a case, those beneficiaries of the inheritance who suffer an injury as a result of the tortious interference can bring a suit against the person who has manipulated the assets. Such conduct could include transferring money between different accounts, converting bank accounts to cash or affecting the distribution of the assets in any other way.
A holographic will is a will that has been written by hand by the person that is establishing the will, legally known as a testator. A holographic will is different from a standard will because it is typically neither notarized nor signed by two witnesses and handwritten.
When preparing your estate plan, not only can you provide directives as to the administration of your estate, but you can also give instructions as to what will happen to your body after you pass away. Providing such instructions yourself would save your family from conflict over what should be done with your body and how you would have wanted to be buried.
The Adult Protective Services in Florida are part of the Florida Department of Children and Families. You can report adult exploitation online at https://reportabuse.dcf.state.fl.us/ or by calling their hotline at 1-800-962-2873.
"*" indicates required fields
Our team of highly trained attorneys have over 100 years of combined higher education, are fluent in 8 languages, and use cutting edge technology to beat the competition.
This is a quick legal reference guide covering 16 topics that every business owner needs to have to start a business.
Esta es una guía rápida de referencia jurídica que cubre 16 temas que cada empresario necesita saber para empezar un negocio.
