48,000 people die in the United States each week and there are still 4 weeks until the start of the season. That means that nearly 100,000 people will die before the season kicks off and over 1.2 million people will die before the Super Bowl. Talk about a futures bet!
August is more than just the prologue to football season. Did you know that August is also a month that celebrates estate planning reminders?
August is National Catfish Month which reminds all of those people that get squeamish when talking about death to Suck It Up and get the estate plan drafted.
August is National Eye Exam Month which reminds us to minimize our estate tax so that the IRS doesn’t rob our families blind after we die.
August is National Golf Month which reminds us to have each estate plan reviewed every 3 to 5 years to see if there is a hole in one.
August is also National Peach month which reminds us that probate is the pits.
After a series of defeats in recent years, the movement to legalize same-sex marriage is hoping that its unexpected victory in New York will revive efforts to legalize gay marriage around the nation. The victory on Friday in New York, arguably the nation’s economic and cultural capital, carries enormous symbolic importance for the same-sex-marriage movement. New York is now the sixth and largest state in the country where gay couples will be able to wed legally. In late July, when the New York’s law goes into effect, there will be twice as many Americans in jurisdictions where same-sex marriage is permitted as there are today.
However, Florida’s outlook for same sex marriage is grim. After the 2008 amendment to the Florida Constitution, both same-sex marriage and civil union have been constitutionally banned in Florida.
Article 1 Section 27 of the Florida Constitution states:
“Marriage defined. Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized.”
Because the law in Florida considers that there is no formal relationship between members of the same sex and unmarried couples, Estate Planning is particularly important. Same sex Couples in Florida have tools at their disposal to plan for the future, among these are Domestic Partnership Agreements. It is equally important to specify your wishes for medical care and elect your healthcare surrogate. Without these documents the hospital must keep you alive by any means necessary, no matter the cost or true desire. Provide your loved ones as much protection as possible by establishing your estate plan.
For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
Too often we use the excuse that “there aren’t enough hours in the day” when we are approached with chores that we know are important but require us to stop our daily routines long enough to take care of them. One of the most important chores that you can ever check off of your To Do List is to have your estate plan drafted. If you already have an estate plan, it is equally important to have it reviewed every 3 to 5 years with an estate planning attorney to account for changes in law, changes in tax and changes in your family.
Today is June 21. June 21 is also known as the Summer Solstice; the longest day of the year. My challenge to you is to use the extra time we receive today (and yes, I know we still only get 24 hours but work with me on this) to make an appointment with an estate planning attorney and get your estate plan in place and up to date before your days get shorter and shorter.
For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
While NBA analysts, sports experts, newspaper columnists, and even your neighbor can make predictions on what is going to happen next, the truth is that the future is unknown for even the most talented of NBA teams. Just like these NBA teams, our future is unknown. The morbid reality is that no one knows when they will die. You can’t predict your future so it’s best to be prepared for it … by properly planning your estate to assure that your assets are protected.
For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
June is a month with a lot of important holidays. The longest day of the year is in the month of June but I’m not using that fact to point out that
life is short and estate planning can’t wait. June also gives us Father’s Day but I’m not going to ask you if your father has his estate plan in order or even if you’ve done your part as a father or mother to assure that your children are protected. June is Gay Pride Month but the theme of this newsletter is not protecting your partner or avoiding will contestsin a state that doesn’t recognize same sex partnerships. Instead, I’d like to point out that I was born on June 22, which turns out to be National Chocolate Eclair Day.
I find it very upsetting that Donald Duck Day (June 9) is sandwiched between Name Your Poison Day and Iced Tea Day. If you are planning on celebrating Insurance Awareness Day on June 28, be certain that all of your insurance is placed in an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust. Whatever holidays you celebrate, please remember to take some time and assure that your family is taken care of with some foundational estate planning.
For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
The homestead protection that the Florida Constitution provides is among one of the many benefits of living here. Homestead’s main objective is to protect the family home. However, homestead creates unique situations when it comes to probate. When a homestead property owner dies there are restrictions on how the property can be transferred to the family regardless of what a will says. Specifically, these restrictions come into play when the decedent has a spouse or minor children.
Who gets the property will depend on who survives the decedent. If the decedent leaves a spouse but no minor children, the spouse gets the property. If a decedent leaves a spouse and a minor child, the spouse gets a life estate in the property, with the property going to the minor child upon the spouse’s death. In the case that the decedent leaves a spouse and only adult children, the spouse also gets only a life estate. However, in this case the decedent may choose to leave the remainder interest to the children or the spouse.
The most important thing to remember is that the homestead laws override any clause in your will. Therefore, if the decedent is survived by a spouse or a minor lineal descendant, the decedent is not free to give the property to just anyone in a will. This makes it crucial to understand the effects homestead property will have on your overall estate plan.
For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
Plantation FL 5/18/2011 - Michael D. Wild, managing partner of Wild Felice & Pardo, PA has been selected as the Small Business Person of the Year for the city of Plantation for his accomplishments in both private legal practice and in community and civic affairs. Over the past year, and throughout his entire legal career, Michael has provided the residents of South Florida with exceptional service and care that goes above and beyond the expected. His extensive knowledge in the areas of estate planning and asset protection, as well as his humorous and caring bedside manner, allows his clients to feel a level of assurance and security that is often missing in most encounters with legal professionals.
According to Wild: “The most important aspect of my practice is the relationship that I build with my client. I don’t see my clients as the
monetary means to a self-serving end. Instead, I treat every client as if they were a family member or friend, which incidentally often leads to that relationship forming. I am often invited to dinner or other social engagements by my clients and many even attempt to marry me off to their daughters … to my wife’s chagrin. The greatest compliment I can receive from my client is them telling me that they feel safer and more secure after sitting and talking with me. The emotional security of my clients has always been a top priority.”
Michael D. Wild is an attorney in greater Fort Lauderdale that focuses his law practice on the areas of estate planning, asset protection and probate administration. He has been serving families and small businesses in the South Florida area since 2006. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, or to schedule your free consultation with Michael Wild, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation.
Yes. Whether you have a will or not, every estate must be probated. Estates that are under $75,000 in total asset value may be probated through a summary administration which is faster and cheaper than a full administration. Estates that are above $75,000 in total asset value must go through a full administration which can cost between 3 and 10 percent of the entire estate and take a minimum of one year prior to distribution. The use of a living trust to own and manage assets during your life can reduce the size of your estate to the point of qualifying for a summary administration. Any assets left outside of the trust must be probated or they cannot be distributed. I get many referrals from people attempting to sell their deceased parents’ homes only to be told by the closing agent that the title isn’t clear and that the home needs to be probated in order to be able to sell it. The longer you wait to probate an estate, the more costly it can become. There are a number of pitfalls to watch out for and it is absolutely imperative to hire a probate attorney as soon as a loved one dies.
Over 70 percent of all Americans have no estate planning documents whatsoever. Of the 30 percent that do, most have only basic documents like a Last Will and Testament, with no regard to probate avoidance, estate tax reduction or asset protection. Of those people that do incorporate a Revocable Living Trust into their foundational estate plan, over 90 percent will leave the trust underfunded or unfunded at death, causing the unnecessary loss of assets and unnecessary delay of distribution. Some basic estate planning upkeep could alleviate all of these concerns.
Your estate plan should be reviewed with an attorney at least once every 3 to 5 years. I review my clients’ estate plans each year to determine if any changes need to be made due to a change in tax law (as happened in 2010), legal drafting requirements (as happened in 2005) or the Probate Code (as happens most years). However, the more pressing changes almost always occur on the personal side of the equation.
Over the course of every 5 year period, most families will see a birth, a death, a marriage or a divorce and this event could cause the need for an amendment to the estate plans of the individual members of that family. Additionally, the beneficiaries might be at different ages or competency levels and the Trustees, Personal Representatives and Guardians might be in different stages in life, areas of the country or financial levels than they were when you originally drafted your plan, which would cause the immediate need to revise and choose new role players.
Another consideration is the age of your attorney. Your estate planning attorney needs to be able to walk your children or other beneficiaries through the administration process. Is your attorney still alive? Is he still practicing? Will he still be practicing when you die? Does he practice in the state in which you currently live?
Any estate planning attorney should give you a free consultation for the review of your estate plan. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. A simple review and possible amendment to your estate plan today will save your family large amounts of money and time after you are gone. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and probate techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Pardo, P.A. at 954-944-2855 or via email at info@wfplaw.com to schedule your free consultation. It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?
May is a month that often makes us think about birth and renewal. April showers bring May flowers and Mother’s Day reminds us about nurturing, springtime and babies being born. However, with Mother’s Day behind us, we can once again focus on death.
WERE YOU BORN?
If you answered yes, I can discern two other facts. First, you either have a mother now or had a mother at one time in the past. Second, you will die.
There are only two certainties in life…
Death and reality shows about hoarding. I bet you thought I was going to say Death and Taxes but the truth is that estate taxes can be eliminated with some basic foundational estate planning techniques. A Bypass Trust can double a married couple’s estate tax exemption amount and life insurance owned by an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust can take care of the rest, in most situations. There are also ways to use Investment Trusts, Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, gifting and planned giving techniques for exceptionally high estates. Fortunately for my wife, the Probate Code says nothing about how to reduce the amount of reality shows about hoarding.
