Probate Lawyer

What does the firm's probate practice cover?

Brett Halperin leads the firm's probate, estate planning, trust administration, elder law, and asset protection practice. We handle the full range of Florida probate matters:

Formal administration. Court-supervised administration for estates exceeding $75,000 or where the decedent died within the last two years. Filed in the 15th Judicial Circuit Probate Division for Palm Beach County estates.

Summary administration. Streamlined administration for smaller estates (under $75,000 non-exempt) or estates where the decedent has been dead more than two years. Typically 4 to 8 weeks from filing to distribution.

Ancillary administration. When a non-Florida resident dies owning Florida real estate, ancillary administration handles the Florida assets alongside the primary probate in the home state. We coordinate with out-of-state counsel.

Personal representative representation. Representing the personal representative (PR) through the entire administration: petition filing, creditor notification, inventory, accountings, distribution, and closing.

Probate litigation. Will contests, breach of fiduciary duty claims, PR removal petitions, contested accountings, and creditor disputes. Heard in the Probate Division of the 15th Judicial Circuit.

Trust administration. Many Florida estates run trust administration in parallel with probate. We handle trustee appointments, accountings, beneficiary distributions, and trust modifications.

Disposition without administration. For very small estates where the only assets are exempt property and reasonable funeral expenses.

Florida probate service areas

The firm serves clients throughout South Florida from offices in West Palm Beach and Boca Raton, including out-of-state beneficiaries and personal representatives administering Florida estates remotely.

Formal vs. summary administration: which one applies?

Florida has two main probate paths. The right one depends on the size of the estate and how long ago the decedent passed.

Our full guide on summary administration in Florida walks through qualifying criteria, required documents, and the process.

Florida probate timeline and cost

Court filing fees and publication costs typically run a few hundred dollars combined. Attorney and personal representative fees are governed by Florida Statute 733.6171 and 733.617, which set presumptively reasonable percentages of estate value. Most attorneys negotiate flat or hourly fees below the statutory percentages for routine cases.

What are the duties of a personal representative in Florida?

The personal representative (Florida's term for executor) is a fiduciary, personally liable for breaching their duties. Major obligations under Chapter 733 of the Florida Statutes:

• Marshaling the estate's assets and protecting them from loss
• Notifying known creditors and publishing notice to unknown creditors
• Filing an inventory with the court within 60 days of letters issuing
• Paying valid debts, taxes, and expenses of administration
• Distributing remaining assets to beneficiaries per the will (or under intestacy if there's no will)
• Filing accountings with the court and a final accounting at closing
• Acting impartially among beneficiaries and avoiding self-dealing

Our breakdown of what Florida personal representatives are legally required to do covers each duty, including the deadlines that most often trip up first-time PRs.

Florida law also restricts who can serve. A non-resident PR must be a close relative (spouse, sibling, parent, child, or other lineal kin), or be appointed alongside a Florida resident co-PR. Convicted felons cannot serve.

Can out-of-state heirs handle Florida probate remotely?

Yes. We handle a high volume of probate cases for beneficiaries and personal representatives who live outside Florida, often the children of snowbirds who maintained dual residency or retired full-time to Palm Beach County.

Out-of-state PRs face a few additional requirements:

• The non-resident PR must be a qualifying relative under Florida Statute 733.304, or serve alongside a Florida resident co-PR
• If the decedent owned real estate in Florida but lived elsewhere, the case may proceed as ancillary administration alongside the primary probate in the home state
• Florida courts allow most filings to be handled by Florida counsel without the PR appearing in person; in-person appearances are rare and usually only for contested hearings

Our full guide on how out-of-state heirs can navigate a Florida probate case covers the qualifying-relative rules, ancillary administration, and the practical logistics.

What happens if a Florida resident dies without a will?

This is called dying intestate. Florida Statute 732 governs how the estate gets distributed, and the order is fixed.

The basic Florida intestate hierarchy:

• Spouse and no descendants: entire estate to spouse
• Spouse and descendants, all common to both: entire estate to spouse
• Spouse and decedent's descendants from a prior relationship: 50% to spouse, 50% to descendants
• Spouse and spouse's descendants from a prior relationship: 50% to spouse, 50% to decedent's descendants
• Descendants but no spouse: entire estate to descendants per stirpes
• No spouse or descendants: parents, then siblings, then more distant relatives

The full hierarchy and the surprises it produces (especially for blended families and unmarried partners, who get nothing under intestacy) are covered in our guide to Florida intestacy laws. To prevent intestacy for your own family, see our estate planning practice.

Why work with Kelley, Grant & Tanis, P.A.

Brett Halperin leads the firm's probate, estate planning, trust administration, elder law, and asset protection practice. Brett earned his JD from the University of Florida Levin College of Law and his Bachelor's in Economics from the University of Florida, where he was a member of Florida Blue Key. He volunteers with the Mission United Veterans Pro-Bono Legal Project and the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County. He's a member in good standing of the Florida Bar. Full attorney bios on our attorneys page.

The firm has two offices in South Florida:

• West Palm Beach Office: 1645 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd, Suite #1200-3, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
• Boca Raton Office: 370 Camino Gardens Blvd., Suite #301, Boca Raton, FL 33432

Probate often touches the firm's other practice areas. Estates with rental property may need eviction support. Estates with title issues benefit from in-house title insurance work. Estates passing through HOA-governed properties may need association law guidance. For estate planning to avoid probate altogether, see our estate planning practice.

Frequently Asked Questions