In almost all cases, you will need an attorney to assist you in processing a Florida probate. In rare exceptions of very small estates, you may be able to manage the administration without an attorney.
Formal administration has so many technical rules and pitfalls that it can be very frustrating for the non-lawyer. Florida’s probate system is too complex for most personal representatives to follow without guidance, and the courts are not set up or staffed to provide probate legal assistance. In addition, judges in the state of Florida require probate documents to meet certain specifications and wording, the forms for which are not available online or even in most libraries. In other words, executors in Florida cannot count on the court clerk’s office to guide them through the administration, as they might in some other states.
The question most people have is why can’t I just record the Will to change the title to my parent’s property in Florida? Well because, Title insurance underwriters in Florida generally do not recognize a recorded will as sufficient to convey title, and for good reasons. First, there is no way for those title insurers to know that the recorded will was valid and was the final will of the deceased. Second, there are situations in which the property cannot pass according to the Will due to the nature of the property, estate creditors, or other reasons. For more information regarding Florida Probate, please feel free to contact our office at 305-227-4030 or email us at legal@raygarcialaw.com.
Ray Garcia, Esq.
Board Certified in Real Estate Law
by the Florida Bar
Law Office of Ray Garcia, P.A.
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