A Florida will can carry a no-contest clause that sounds airtight and still be unenforceable. John Marshall walks through the five estate planning mistakes he sees most among Florida families, starting with documents drafted before a move, a marriage, or the 2011 overhaul of the state’s power of attorney law. He explains why an unfunded or poorly funded trust can still land a family in probate. Married couples who title joint assets to a joint trust lose their creditor protection.
John also covers beneficiary forms that send an IRA to an ex, the flaws in DIY and AI-drafted documents, and the cost of assuming the kids will sort it out. He closes with a bonus warning about attorneys who draft whatever a client asks for, even when Florida law won’t allow it.
Every one of these mistakes is fixable if someone catches it in time.
In this episode, you will hear:
- Why wills and trusts from another state can fail under Florida law
- The 2011 power of attorney statute and the guardianship it can force
- Unfunded trusts and the homestead deed that never got recorded
- How joint trusts strip married couples of tenancy by the entirety protection
- Beneficiary designations that send an IRA to an ex or leave a special needs child without a trust
- The real risks of DIY and AI-drafted estate documents
- Family disputes that start when parents assume the kids will figure it out
Resources from this Episode
Get Your Free Guide – Florida homestead law works differently from the state you came from. This free guide covers the five assumptions that cost families here the most: https://go.marshalllawpa.com/optin
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