Miami Elder Law Attorney

Miami's older adults include lifelong residents, retirees from the Northeast and families with roots across the Caribbean and Latin America. Elder law questions here often span generations and borders: a grandmother in Hialeah who signed documents abroad, a father in Coral Gables whose children live in three countries, a widow in Miami Beach worried about her condo's taxes. This page explains how guardianship works in the Eleventh Circuit, what the Clerk charges, and the county's senior property tax exemptions, which differ from city to city.

Communities we serve

• Miami and Little Havana
• Coral Gables and South Miami
• Miami Beach, Surfside and Bal Harbour
• Aventura and North Miami
• Hialeah, Doral and Miami Lakes
• Kendall, Pinecrest, Cutler Bay and Homestead

Where Miami guardianship cases are filed

Under s. 26.021, the Eleventh Judicial Circuit serves a single county, the one that includes Miami. Its Probate Division sits in the Osvaldo N. Soto Justice Center at 20 NW 1st Avenue, and the Clerk's Probate Court office is in Suite 6.223 of that building. The Clerk publishes its guardianship filing fees:

Those are court costs only. Attorney fees, examining committee fees and any bond are separate. The circuit lists the Probate Division as open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Original documents and payments go to the Clerk's office on the sixth floor, so if you are bringing a parent's papers downtown, plan for building security and allow extra time.

The Eleventh Circuit's guardianship orders

The circuit's Probate Division page lists the local orders and memoranda that shape guardianship cases, including:

• An administrative memorandum on guardian credit history, which applies the screening required by s. 744.3135.
• An administrative memorandum listing approved probate providers for guardianship courses, chosen through a request for qualifications for providers who teach guardians within 4 months of appointment, as s. 744.3145 requires.
• An administrative memorandum referring incapacity, emergency temporary guardian and restoration proceedings to the Probate General Magistrate.
• AO 21-05, on notice of a petition for restoration of capacity.
• AO 15-04, creating a registry for appointing professional guardians.

Because incapacity and emergency matters are referred to a general magistrate, many Miami families first appear before the magistrate rather than a circuit judge. We explain each step as it comes.

How a Miami guardianship unfolds

1. A petition to determine incapacity and a petition to appoint a guardian are filed by a Florida attorney.
2. The court appoints an attorney for the person and an examining committee of three, each of whom reports within 15 days.
3. The court considers whether an alternative, such as a power of attorney, is enough before appointing a guardian.
4. The proposed guardian completes credit and background screening and, once appointed, the approved course.
5. The guardian files an initial report within 60 days of letters, then annual reports.

Documents that avoid a guardianship

A durable power of attorney signed before two witnesses and a notary, a health care surrogate designation and a living will, each signed before two adult witnesses, are usually enough. A preneed guardian declaration under s. 744.3045 lets a parent choose a guardian in advance. Documents signed in another country may not be accepted by Florida banks or hospitals, so we review them and, where needed, prepare Florida versions that the people named can actually use here.

Long term care and Medicaid

The Department of Children and Families decides Medicaid eligibility. Apply through ACCESS Florida at myaccess.myflfamilies.com, checking HCBS/Waivers or Nursing Home on the Benefit Information screen, or call (850) 300-4323. DCF reviews asset transfers within the 60 months before the application month for the Institutional Care Program, and its rules change and depend on the person. We do not promise eligibility. The Alliance for Aging, 760 NW 107th Avenue in Miami, is the Aging and Disability Resource Center for the county and Monroe County, (305) 670-6500, and its Elder Helpline is (305) 670-4357.

Senior property tax exemptions

The county Property Appraiser lists a $50,000 senior exemption countywide for owners 65 and older with 2025 household income up to $38,686, and most cities add another $50,000. Aventura and Golden Beach add $25,000, while Florida City, Indian Creek and Miami Shores add none. The long term senior exemption, for owners of 25 years or more in a home worth under $250,000 when first claimed, applies to all county taxes and has been adopted by cities including Miami, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Hialeah, Doral, Homestead, Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay, but not by Aventura, Key Biscayne, Surfside, Bal Harbour or South Miami. Neither exemption reduces school taxes. Applications are due March 1 and renew automatically. If you miss that date, the Property Appraiser describes a late filing window that runs to the date on the August notice, which may require a petition to the Value Adjustment Board and a $15 fee. The appraiser also has separate pages for widow or widower, disability and disabled veteran exemptions, so ask about each one when you file. Our Florida homestead planning page covers the inheritance rules.

How we work with Miami clients

Miami clients meet with an attorney at our Fort Lauderdale office or by phone or video, which suits families with relatives abroad. Your first consultation is free, and because the firm limits its caseload, you work directly with an attorney. See our Miami estate planning and Miami probate pages, and our Florida elder law overview. Contact us to get started.