Palm Beach Probate Lawyers

When a Palm Beach estate is loaded with debts, disputed bills, medical liens, and aggressive creditors, probate stops being routine paperwork. Our firm concentrates on Florida estates where the creditor and claims process drives every decision — from whether to open formal or summary administration to how the personal representative protects beneficiaries from being personally exposed. We practice Florida probate under the Florida Probate Code (Chapters 731–735) and the companion trust rules in Chapter 736.

Why Creditor-Heavy Estates Are Different

Most probate guidance assumes a tidy estate: a house, a bank account, a couple of beneficiaries. The estates we handle look different. A decedent may leave hospital balances, a reverse mortgage, credit-card debt sent to collections, a tax lien, or a contested loan from a relative. In those situations the order in which debts get paid, the validity of each claim, and the running of the creditor claims period decide who actually receives anything. Getting the sequence wrong can leave a personal representative writing checks out of their own pocket.

The Florida Creditor Claims Clock

Florida law forces creditors onto a deadline. The personal representative publishes a Notice to Creditors, and known or reasonably ascertainable creditors must also be served directly. Under section 733.702, creditors generally must file a statement of claim within the later of three months after the first publication or thirty days after being served. Section 733.710 sets an outer bar of two years from the date of death for most claims regardless of notice. Identifying which creditors are “reasonably ascertainable,” serving them correctly, and then objecting to bad claims is the core of our work.

Formal vs. Summary Administration

Florida offers summary administration when the estate’s non-exempt assets are $75,000 or less, or the decedent has been dead more than two years. Creditor-heavy estates frequently do not qualify, or should not use summary administration, because that path does not appoint a personal representative to manage and contest claims. For estates with real creditor exposure, formal administration under Chapter 733 usually gives the family the tools it needs — a personal representative, the claims bar, and an orderly order of payment under section 733.707.

Protecting Homestead and the Family

Florida’s constitutional homestead protection is a powerful shield. A properly characterized homestead generally passes to heirs free of the decedent’s creditors, outside the reach of most claims. Determining whether the residence qualifies, and how it descends, is often the single most valuable analysis in a debt-burdened estate. We also evaluate the surviving spouse’s elective share under section 732.2065 and exempt property and family allowance rights.

Our Palm Beach Probate Services

We guide personal representatives and beneficiaries through formal administration, summary administration, creditor claim objections, homestead determinations, and will and trust disputes. Whether you are an executor staring at a stack of bills or a beneficiary worried the estate will be drained, we map the claims landscape first, then build the administration around it.

Consult a Florida Attorney

This page is general information about Florida probate, not legal advice. Deadlines such as the claims period and the two-year bar are unforgiving, and every estate is different. Speak with a licensed Florida attorney about your specific situation before acting.