Blackburn v. Boulis, — So.3d —-, 2016 WL 231405 (Fla. 4th DCA January 20, 2016)
Gus Boulis was a spectacularly successful self-made millionaire with a sixth grade education whose life story was as colorful as it was improbable. And …
Marital Agreements and Spousal Rights
4th DCA says NO to “legal gymnastics” aimed at getting around Florida’s post-divorce automatic will-revocation statute
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Posted in Marital Agreements and Spousal Rights
Carroll v. Israelson, — So.3d —-, 2015 WL 3999486 (Fla. 4th DCA July 01, 2015)
In 1951 Florida enacted a statute automatically cutting divorced spouses out of each others’ wills (currently at F.S. 732.507(2)). In 1989 Florida …
4th DCA: Does a surviving widow have “standing” to assert her predeceased husband’s homestead rights?
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Lyons v. Lyons, — So.3d —-, 2014 WL 5460621 (Fla. 4th DCA October 29, 2014)
This is one of two cases published in 2014 involving litigated homestead rights and property deeded to a qualified personal residence trust (QPRT). …
4th DCA: Should post-nuptial waivers of homestead rights be assumed anytime spouses sign a joint deed?
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Stone v. Stone, — So.3d —-, 2014 WL 5834826 (Fla. 4th DCA November 12, 2014)
Under Florida law a surviving spouse’s testamentary rights in the couple’s marital homestead residence are spelled out in Art. X, § 4(c) of the …
2d DCA: Surviving spouse’s Homestead Rights vs. ex-spouse’s contractual rights under Marital Settlement Agreement. Who wins?
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Friscia v. Friscia, — So.3d —-, 2014 WL 4212689 (Fla. 2d DCA August 27, 2014)
It’s not unusual for marital settlement agreements (“MSAs”) to pop up as major players in contested probate proceedings (see here, here, here…
Interview with a Probate Lawyer: Frank T. Adams
Frank T. Adams of Dunwody White & Landon, P.A. in Coral Gables, Florida, was on the winning side of Kelley v. Kelley, an interesting 4th DCA opinion I wrote about here involving a collateral attack on a “quickie” Nevada …
4th DCA: What’s it take to collaterally attack a “quickie” Nevada divorce as part of a Florida inheritance dispute?
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Kelley v. Kelley, — So.3d —-, 2014 WL 4427275 (Fla. 4th DCA September 10, 2014)
In this case a disinherited son contested his father’s estate on the grounds that his father wasn’t “legally” married at the time of his …
Can a corporate trustee caught in middle of on-going divorce litigation sue one of the ex-spouses for unjust enrichment?
By Juan C. Antúnez on
Berlinger v. Wells Fargo, N.A., Slip Copy, 2014 WL 4071667 (M.D.Fla. August 18, 2014)
This isn’t the first time the trusts at the center of this on-going divorce battle have made it into a published court ruling. I previously …
Florida must recognize gay widower’s Delaware marriage for purposes of appointing the non-resident personal representative of his ancillary estate, Palm Beach probate judge rules
Estate of Bangor, Case No. 502014CP001857 (Fla. 15th Cir, Palm Beach, August 5, 2014)
Florida law says you can’t appoint a non-resident to serve as personal representative of your estate unless that person’s your “spouse” or otherwise related to …
2d DCA: If the judge adjudicating your divorce enters final judgment, but retains jurisdiction to decide property issues, does that jurisdictional authority evaporate if one of the parties to the original divorce proceeding dies?
Passamondi v. Passamondi, — So.3d —-, 2014 WL 228648 (Fla. 2d DCA January 22, 2014)
The traditional rule is that an action for divorce is purely personal in nature and that the death of one of the parties causes …