Florida lawsuit challenges estate trustees on property sales

Preparing an estate plan leads a person or family to consider the future of the assets built up over a long and productive lifetime. Everyone has the right to make determinations about how their property, assets and investments are bequeathed to family, organizations or trusts.

Trusts are the most reliable way to ensure that wills are honored, especially if an estate is complicated or includes many assets or properties of high value. Trusts include executors, who are responsible for making or enacting decisions, and beneficiaries, who are guaranteed the assets or dividends from these decisions.

Sometimes, these trusts or their execution can be challenged if an involved party thinks that the beneficiaries are not receiving what they should. This can aid or prevent the sale or auctioning of assets included in the estate.

A South Florida home with more than 24,000 square feet of living space is the subject of a lawsuit challenging its sale. A prominent real estate group has listed the property for $46 million.

The daughter of a prominent lawyer who owned the house objected to a petition filed by his estate’s trust. She alleges that the beneficiary of the trust, her octogenarian mother, is not having her best interests served by the sale.

The trustees evicted the daughter during the process of preparing the property for sale. A circuit judge in the Florida city where the property is located will determine if the sale can go through.

Authors of wills and trust documents must consider the legal outcomes of future actions. Legal representation with experience in real estate law can help determine the issues that require the most attention in planning your estate.

Source: The Real Deal, “Estate of attorney asks $46M for Palm Beach home amid dispute,” Mike Seemuth, Sep. 09, 2017