Indian Harbour Beach Law Office

Indian Harbour Beach sits on the barrier island in Brevard County, a short drive from Melbourne and close to Satellite Beach. Our office on Jimmy Buffett Memorial Highway is convenient for clients up and down the Space Coast, including Palm Bay to the south and Cocoa Beach and Viera to the north. Estate planning and probate are the main focus of this office, and we also help Brevard clients with real estate and business matters.

Estate planning attorney for Melbourne and the Space Coast

Many people who meet with us here are planning for the next stage of life, or have just moved to Florida and want their documents to work under Florida law. A complete plan usually includes some combination of:

• A last will and testament, signed at the end before two witnesses who sign in your presence and each other's.
• A revocable living trust, so that assets titled in the trust pass without probate.
• A durable power of attorney, signed before two witnesses and a notary, so someone you trust can handle your finances.
• A health care surrogate designation and a living will, so your medical wishes are known and someone can speak for you.

If you own a home in Brevard County as your primary residence, Florida homestead rules matter in two separate ways. The property tax exemption is handled by the Brevard County Property Appraiser, and under section 196.011, Florida Statutes, the application is due on or before March 1 of the tax year. If the home is held in a trust, the Property Appraiser's homestead filing instructions list a copy of the trust agreement among the documents to include, so retitling a home into a trust should be coordinated with the exemption.

The second set of rules is constitutional. The Florida Constitution protects a homestead from most creditors, but it also restricts how the home can be left by will when the owner is survived by a spouse or a minor child. Florida also recognizes enhanced life estate deeds, often called lady bird deeds, which can be useful in some plans. We look at how your home is titled before we recommend anything.

Signing your documents correctly

Florida is strict about how estate planning documents are signed, and a document that misses a formality may not work when your family needs it. A few of the rules we follow at every signing:

• A self proving affidavit signed before a notary lets your will be admitted to probate without locating the witnesses later.
• The parts of a revocable trust that take effect at death must be signed with the same formalities as a will.
• In a durable power of attorney, certain powers, such as creating or changing a trust, must be separately initialed by you.
• A handwritten will is only valid if it is signed and witnessed like any other Florida will.

We supervise the signing so each requirement is met, and we explain what every document does before you sign it.

Probate attorney in Brevard County

When a Brevard County resident dies, probate is generally filed with the Brevard County Clerk of the Court's Probate department and heard in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, which serves Brevard and Seminole counties. Florida generally requires the personal representative to be represented by a Florida attorney. We help personal representatives through probate administration, from deciding between formal administration and summary administration to publishing the notice to creditors, which starts a three month window for most claims.

Real estate attorney in Melbourne and Brevard

Brevard property owners also come to us for real estate help: residential and commercial transactions, landlord and tenant matters including evictions, land use and zoning questions, and title disputes. Real estate and estate planning often overlap here, for example when a home or rental property needs to be retitled into a trust.

Business law for Space Coast owners

For business owners we handle entity formation, partnership agreements, corporate governance and asset protection through our corporate practice. If you own a business, your estate plan should account for it too, and we can look at both together.

How a consultation works

1. Reach out. Call (954) 707-0530 or send a request and mention that you would like to meet at the Indian Harbour Beach office.
2. Gather what you have. Existing wills, trusts, deeds, account statements or, for probate, the death certificate and any will are all helpful.
3. Talk with an attorney. The first consultation is free. We listen first, then explain how Florida law generally applies.
4. Receive a clear plan. If you decide to go ahead, we explain the documents, the steps and the signing process in plain language.