In what team president Pat Riley called an unsurprising move this morning, four-time MVP LeBron James opted out of his current contract with the Miami Heat. Before you let the panic you see from some on your Facebook feed overwhelm you, and before you buy into Knicks fans’ claims that LeBron is leaving South Florida for the bright lights of New York City, take a moment to think about the situation. If LeBron and the rest of the Big Three opted in to their current contracts, the Heat would have over $60 million worth of salary on the books. With a salary cap for the next season protected at $63 million, that would not give the Heat much room to work with. What LeBron appears to understand is that long term planning is the key to success. You too can plan ahead by “opting in” to an estate plan.

If you die without an estate plan, the intestacy laws of Florida will determine who gets your property. Depending on your marriage situation, this can lead to a distribution that does not meet your wishes. Most people think that a will is the best way to distribute your assets. While a will is certainly a way to legally distribute your assets, a will must be probated before the assets get to your beneficiaries. The probate process can cost you a great deal of both time and money, leaving your beneficiaries without the assets for an extended period of time. A will gives complete control of distributions at the time of your death, but that is where the control ends. Once the assets are distributed to the beneficiaries, they become the owners and can do with them what they please. This can unfortunately lead to situations where they lose their entire inheritance, either through divorce, remarriage, or creditors.

A trust based estate plan can be used to avoid probate while also allowing you to control your assets from beyond the grave and protecting them from creditors. A living trust allows you to still use your assets during your life and then keep whatever you give to your beneficiaries protected. Unlike a will, assets in a trust based plan will be kept in trust, meaning each of your beneficiaries will receive a trust fund that is protected from creditors, lawsuits, and divorce. A trust also allows you to leave to later generations without gifting them outright. For example, you can leave money in trust to your children for their lives, and then the remainder to your grandchildren. A trust based estate plan provides you the opportunity to look ahead to the future while also making sure you get to enjoy everything while you are still alive.

While the future of LeBron James, the Big 3, and the hearts of South Florida basketball fans still have to wait to see what the future holds, you can be prepared for whatever comes your way by opting in to an estate plan today.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

The University of Miami took planning ahead to an entirely new level this weekend by beginning the recruiting process of a 9-year-old point guard. While a lot can happen in the nine years before the Downey Christian School star makes her college decision (who knows if she will even want to play basketball by then?), Miami is showing foresight in looking forward to the future. Just as the school will be benefit from its forethought, so will you by having a proper estate plan in place. Currently, less than half of all Florida residents have an estate plan, yet the death rate in Florida has held steady at 100%. Regardless of age or health, it is never too early to start planning ahead because you never know what the future will bring.

A proper estate plan will answer three key questions: what are your assets? Where are they going? How will they get there? These questions are simple but the answer can be quite complicated. While a will is effective in transferring property at death, your estate would then have to be probated, a long process that delays your loved ones receiving their property. A devise from a will also removes any control you would have beyond the initial bequest. For example, once you give an asset to your child, you would not be able to determine if it goes to your grandchildren or to someone else; your child would have complete discretion. However, if you were to use a trust based estate plan, you would both retain control and avoid probate. Trusts also have the added benefit of asset protection from creditors. A trust based plan can be used to satisfy your estate planning goals, making sure that your loved ones are taken care of in all situations.

Whether you choose a will based plan or a trust based plan, your planning should also include a power of attorney, health care surrogates, and HIPAA releases. These planning tools may be overlooked, but their importance can not be overstated. The power of attorney and designation of a healthcare surrogate will allow important healthcare and financial decisions to be made for you in the event of incapacity or death, while the HIPAA release will make sure your healthcare surrogate will have access to whatever he or she needs to make informed decisions. By planning for the future and using these various techniques, your family will hopefully be protected creditors and other hassles when the time comes. Get ahead of the other 50% of Florida resident and get an estate plan now. It’s never too early to plan ahead.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 to schedule your free consultation. It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

It’s no secret that soccer is not America’s sport, and as the US Men’s National Team kicks off its World Cup run against Ghana tonight, both the team and the fans face a long and arduous road ahead. While the US team must deal with what experts have coined the “group of death,” the vast majority of American sports fans will watch soccer for the first time in four years, filled with confusion as they try to understand something they have no familiarity with. This process of headache and confusion is similar to what you will experience if you find yourself probating a family member or loved one’s estate. Just like the winner of this year’s World Cup will have great coaching, an experienced probate attorney can help guide you through the process.

Put simply, probate is the process of validating the will. A will is not effective in the state of Florida until it has been probated. Once duly probated, there is proof that there was no fraud, duress, mistake, or undue influence; that the will was unrevoked; and that the decedent was competent.¹ Unfortunately, the definition is often the simplest part of the probate process.

Probate in Florida is complex and not intuitive for those who do not have the requisite training. The personal representative of an estate has many responsibilities, including paying court fees, estate and gift taxes (if applicable), and funeral costs. The personal representative is also responsible for administering the estate, which requires taking possession of property in the name of the estate and distributing it according to the will. This may involve an accounting of the estate assets, a process you may not be equipped to handle. Furthermore, a personal representative may be required to get property appraisals and represent the estate’s interest in any litigation. A mishandling of probate may lead to an increased duration of the probate process, preventing the assets from being distributed, and even worse, it may leave you with personal liability.

If you think the World Cup takes a long time to resolve, that is nothing compared to how long probate can take. The potential for a long process may mean higher costs for you. Let our experienced lawyers carry the burden and facilitate a cost-effective transition of your loved one’s estate. For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

¹ Fl. Stat. 733.103

As summer descends upon South Florida, we’re all getting ready for some fun in the sun. Whether it’s a day of fishing or riding out to a sandbar, chances are everyone will be spending some time on a boat this summer. In addition to knowing where your life jacket is, you should also have a proper estate plan in place, to keep your loved ones afloat in the event of an accident.

Last year in Florida, 62 people died in boating accidents, with another 420 injured.¹ While these numbers might seem low when you consider the number of registered watercrafts in Florida, the price you pay if you are one of the unfortunate victims will be quite high. If you haven’t done the proper estate planning, you may find yourself at risk of losing everything, or leaving your family in a dire financial position. By taking full advantage of our estate planning services, you can kick back and relax this summer.

At Wild Felice & Partners, P.A., our services include living trusts and wills, as well as living wills, durable powers of attorney, and designation of a healthcare surrogate, which allow us to ensure that you and your family are protected, whatever summer brings. Whether you are injured or worse on the water or find yourself involved in a legal battle following a boating accident, the right estate plan and asset protection will keep you, your family, and your assets in the best possible position, even in the worst situations. You don’t always know what is going to happen, but with proper estate planning, you can get some sun and enjoy the water knowing that you have prepared for even the worst situations.

For more information on successful Florida estate planning and asset protection techniques, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected? SM

¹ Source: http://myfwc.com/media/2804479/2013-BoatingStatistics-injury.pdf

With Father’s day around the corner many will celebrate this Sunday by spending the day with dad, others may not be so fortunate. Whenever a loved one passes with or without leaving behind a will, the family must go through a process called probate. Probate is the process by which Florida courts oversee the distribution of the estate’s assets, such as any property, savings or bank accounts, investment accounts, and even valuable personal property such as cars or jewelry.

The probate process begins by appointing a personal representative who would be in charge of distributing the assets of the estate; personal representatives are often named in wills, if there is no will then the personal representative must be elected by all interested parties. After the personal representative has been chosen the court will then issue Letters of Administration, empowering the personal representative to begin distributing the assets of the estate.

Under Florida law if the value of the estate exceeds $75,000 then the state requires an attorney be retained in order to represent the estate and the personal representative in order to avoid any fraudulent or erroneous administration of the estate.

For more information on the Florida probate process, please contact the South Florida law firm of Wild Felice & Partners, P.A. at 954-944-2855 to schedule your free consultation.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM

The movement to legalize same-sex marriage around the nation continues and on Monday Oregon became the 18^th state to allow same sex marriages. However, Florida’s outlook for same sex marriage is grim. Florida’s laws regarding gay marriage, and its outright ban on gay adoptions, make it particularly important for same sex couples to properly create an estate plan that documents their wishes and addresses their needs.

Make sure your beloved partner is protected upon your passing.  At Wild Felice & Partners, we can work with you to draft a comprehensive estate plan to recreate some of the rights and benefits of traditional married couples.  Some key elements include:

• Last Will and Testament to ensure that your estate is not blindly distributed according to intestacy laws.
• Living Will which will specify how you would like to be taken care of in case of incapacity.
• Designation of Health Care Surrogate which will allow your same-sex partner to give informed consent for your medical treatment.

Our South Florida law firm treats estate planning in terms of a married couple, so the fee plan for a same-sex couple will naturally get the same treatment.  For more information on how to plan for your partner’s future, contact our South Florida law firm of Wild, Felice & Partners, PA for a free consultation at (954) 944-2855.

It’s a Wild world. Are you protected?SM