There’s a good reason why homestead litigation is a recurring theme on this blog: it’s a non-intuitive thicket of complexity that can trip up even the best and brightest lawyers and judges. One way to cut through this complexity is …
Can a condo subject to a 100 year lease = creditor protected homestead property for your heirs?
Geraci ex rel. Geraci v. Sunstar EMS, — So.3d —- 2012 WL 2401793 (Fla. 2d DCA June 27, 2012)
Once again we have a homestead case where the key to understanding what went wrong is is recognizing that one …
What happens when homestead property is invalidly devised in trust?
Aronson v. Aronson, — So.3d —-, 2012 WL 280565 (Fla. 3d DCA February 01, 2012)
Estate planners beware. As reported here by the WSJ, “When it comes to blended families, estate planning can be a special kind of …
If a foreign national doesn’t qualify for the homestead tax exemption, is he also automatically disqualified from claiming homestead creditor protection?
Grisolia v. Pfeffer, — So.3d —-, 2011 WL 5864806 (Fla. 3d DCA Nov 23, 2011)
The key to understanding this case is recognizing that one word: “homestead;” is used in three very different ways in Florida’s constitution:
[1] Exemption …
Homestead rights evaporate at death if property was owned as a joint tenancy with right of survivorship
Marger v. De Rosa, — So.3d —-, 2011 WL 252942 (Fla. 2d DCA January 28, 2011)
A joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS) is a type of concurrent estate in which co-owners have a right of survivorship, meaning …
Can husband and wife waive homestead rights by merely signing a joint deed?
Habeeb v. Linder, — So.3d —-, 2011 WL 613392 (Fla. 3d DCA Feb 09, 2011)
UPDATE: This case was settled, prompting the 3d DCA to enter this order withdrawing its opinion. Trust and estates lawyer extraordinaire, Jeff Baskies, …
Does homestead property in marital trust lose its creditor protection?
Aronson v. Aronson, — So.3d —-, 2010 WL 4226204 (Fla. 3d DCA Oct 27, 2010)
In July of 1996 Mr. Aronson deeded his condo (located on Key Biscayne, FL) to his revocable trust. Upon Mr. Aronson’s death, his revocable …
New legislation cures Florida’s “homestead trap” for widows and widowers and resolves conflicting judicial decisions regarding post-death disclaimers of homestead rights
Back in 2007 I wrote here about a provocative Florida Bar Journal article [click here] by renowned trusts and estates attorney Jeffrey A. Baskies sounding the alarm on the unfair economic burden borne by widows and widowers receiving life …
5th DCA on Rescinding Fraudulently Obtained Deeds
Townsend v. Morton, — So.3d —-, 2010 WL 2218327 (Fla. 5th DCA Jun 04, 2010)
Deeds are common will-substitutes, so no surprise they come up with some frequency in inheritance disputes . . . and this blog [click …
The 4th DCA construes will properly devising Florida homestead
Pajares v. Donahue, — So.3d —-, 2010 WL 934101 (Fla. 4th DCA Mar 17, 2010)
A will provision devising Florida homestead property is valid ONLY if BOTH elements of the following two-part test are satisfied:
- The homestead was subject