Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Florida

My father died July 17,2011, in Stuart Florida. His wife (not my mother) and my father had no children together. Does his wife have to contact my siblings and my self and let us know if he had a will? If there was no will, do we have a right to 50% of his estate?

How should we go about looking into our rights?


Asked on 9/08/11, 4:49 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Lucreita Becude Lucreita D. Becude, P.A.

If you are a beneficiary under his will, then yes. If there is no will, then you own 50%.

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Answered on 9/08/11, 5:19 am
Richard Kaplan

Besides what you would receive under a Will a determination has to be made as to what assets require probate. If everything is jointly owned with the wife then you would get nothing, and the Will wouldn't do anything.

If something solely has his name on it, probate would be required and whoever initiates the probate would eventually have to give notice to siblings.

If there is a Will, then it must be filed with the court, though they don't have to notify you of it. It just may be filed pursuant to Florida Statutes but not for purposes of probate. If it is filed, you are entitled to a copy from the court. If there is a Will and it is not filed, then you can file an action to force it to be filed. It still doesn't determine whether there is any probate or not.

Hope this helps.

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Answered on 9/08/11, 6:17 am


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