Keeping the Holidays Happy: How to Navigate the Holidays as a Divorced Family

The holidays are a special time of year for families and young children - so how do you keep the magic of the holiday season after divorce? The key is good co-parenting. Effective co-parenting will ensure that the divorce has minimal impact on your children, especially during the holidays. There are three steps to effective co-parenting during the holidays:

Step 1: Plan Ahead – When Walmart starts pulling out their holiday decorations, you should be pulling out a copy of your Parenting Plan. What does the Parenting Plan say about holiday timesharing? Is it clear? Does your child’s school schedule this year in some way impact or change the way you have shared holiday time in prior years? These are all questions to ask yourself early on in order to clear up any misunderstandings about the holiday schedule. Communicate your understanding of the holiday schedule to your co-parent well in advance and confirm all dates, times and drop off/pick up locations with him/her.

Step 2: Don’t Be Afraid to Compromise – Neither your attorney nor the judge had a crystal ball when your Parenting Plan was first established. Because of this, special circumstances, events and opportunities may arise during the holidays that were not contemplated in your Parenting Plan. It’s often difficult to compromise during the holiday season since this time is so special with your children; however, always keep your children’s best interests in mind and know that there will likely be a time in the future in which you will be asking your co-parent to be reasonable with a schedule change during the holidays. If you’ve completed Step 1, you have likely sorted this out well in advance to prevent any added stress during the holiday.

Step 3: Be Together – Just because you are divorced doesn’t mean that you have to spend time with your children separately. If you have maintained an effective co-parenting relationship with your former spouse, plan some time to do something together with your children. Whether it is attending a holiday religious service, school function or simply opening a few gifts together, these brief moments of unity will have a positive impact on your children.

From our Older, Lundy & Alvarez Family to your Family, we wish you a warm and HAPPY Holiday season!

Happy Holidays from Michael Lundy, Founding Partner

As this year comes to an end, I write to express my sincere gratitude to you. If you are receiving this email, you may be a friend, a colleague, a client, or someone that referred a client to the firm. You may fit into more than one or even all of these categories. Whatever the case, your trust and your loyalty mean more to me than I could ever express in this email.

In my line of work, I see both the best and the worst that people can be. I try to learn from the people I represent and even from those that are adverse so that I can be a better father, husband and business-owner with each passing year. One thing I know for sure is that your decision about which attorney to choose is a uniquely important one, which likely will have long lasting implications in your life, and often is a decision that is made in a moment of great confusion or upset. I am sincerely humbled when that choice is me or another attorney in my firm.

I believe that Older Lundy & Alvarez has become the best law firm in all of Tampa Bay for many reasons. We have attracted extraordinary attorneys in order to expand our practice areas and offer our clients a home for almost any legal need. We will forever be committed to giving you our best work, and to taking care of your friends and family in the same manner we took care of you. I make this as a promise today, tomorrow, in the New Year and for as long as I am practicing law. We will always be here when you need us.

I wish you a holiday season filled with warmth, happiness and love and hope you can spend time with the people that matter most to you. May 2019 bring you all that you deserve and more.

Sincerely,
Michael Lundy

p.s. Our office will be closed during all of the major holidays. Be sure you have the mobile phone number of the attorney with who you are working. But if something comes up and you have nowhere else to turn in an emergency, please call me at 813-598-2074.

Meet Jennifer Meister, Martial & Family Law Attorney

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Visit Adam Birch Bio

David Fall's article on "Get A Trust And You Can Tell Creditors To Go Away."

A trust is still one of the most popular estate planning documents due in large part to its versatility and asset protection characteristics. The creator of a trust (usually referred to as the "settlor" or "grantor") can create a trust during his or her lifetime or create a trust through his or her will. There are various types of trusts, each having its own benefits and liabilities, and a trust can be written to accomplish a wide variety of goals.

In a trust, the grantor relinquishes control of any property contributed to that trust to the trustee of that trust. However, through the terms of the trust, the grantor determines the beneficiaries of the trust and under what conditions the income and principal of the trust can be distributed to the beneficiaries by the trustee.

For more information on the benefits of having a trust, click here to read a recent article on the subject by, David Fall, a member of OLA's Corporate & Tax Estate & Probate Law Practice Group.

Older Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Margaux Payor

Margaux Payor specializing in Family and Marital Law.
 For full bio, click here.

Hillsborough County Bar Association - Lawyer Magazine

Hillsborough County Bar Association January/February 2018
Lawyer Magazine Vol. 28, No. 3 Check out the latest edition of Lawyer Magazine featuring TWO articles written by Older Lundy and Alvarez attorneys, Michael Lundy & David Fall.

Click here to view and/or download:

David Fall's article on "Surviving Spouses Can Elect to Receive More Property From Your Estate."

The Florida legislature recently made several important amendments to Florida’s elective share statutes. This article describes some of the key changes and how those changes bring great news to the surviving spouses of deceased Florida residents. In Florida, despite the terms of any will attempting to disinherit him or her, the surviving spouse of a deceased Florida resident is entitled to what’s called an “elective share” of the decedent’s property equal to 30% of the elective estate. The “elective estate” consists of the decedent’s probate estate plus certain property that is omitted from the probate estate, such as the homestead and property jointly owned in a right of survivorship form. This means that the decedent’s surviving spouse can elect to receive a potentially larger portion of the decedent’s property than that left to him or her in the decedent’s will. Moreover, the elective share is in addition to other rights afforded surviving spouses, such as entitlement to homestead protection, creditor exempt property, and the family allowance.

Click here to read the full article.

Older Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Carl Mitchell

Older, Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Carl Mitchell

Carl Mitchell specializing in Commercial & Construction Litigation.
 For full bio, click here.

David Fall's article on tax liability was published in the Florida Bar Journal.

David Fall's article on tax liability was published in the Florida Bar Journal. His article discusses various means to reduce a shareholder’s tax liability when liquidating an S Corporation that owns particular assets. Before you liquidate your S Corporation, contact the tax attorneys at Older, Lundy & Alvarez to discuss your options and keep your hard-earned money.

Click here to read the full article.

Formal v. Summary Administration

In the world of Probate Law, knowing the difference between Formal Administration and Summary Administration, and which to select given the particular facts of the case, can ease the complexity of managing the estate of the deceased.

The temptation is to select Summary Administration when available because it's generally a shorter process but, depending on the facts, certain aspects of Summary Administration can make the process more complex and more costly. When dealing with the recent death of a loved one, the last thing you want to worry about is a prolonged court case and more expenses.

Click here to learn the prominent differences between Formal Administration and Summary Administration.

Older Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Susan Stromberg

Older, Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Susan Stromberg

Susan Stromberg specializing in Family Law.

For full bio, click here.

Older, Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Martin Deptula

Older, Lundy & Alvarez Welcomes: Martin Deptula

Martin Deptula specializing in Family Law & Commercial Litigation.

For full bio, click here.

The Florida Bar News

Leadership Academy turns out ‘All-Star’ lawyers, including OLA Attorney Kim Hamill.

When Eugene Pettis became The Florida Bar’s first African-American president in 2013, he offered the promise of inclusion to lawyers willing to meet him halfway. Instead of sitting on the sidelines, lawyers who asked to become involved would receive help building leadership skills to use in the Bar and in their communities.

His brainchild was called the Wm. Reece Smith, Jr. Leadership Academy, named after the late chair emeritus of Carlton Fields, and its aim is to train future leaders of the Bar and the profession, with the motto: “Training Today, Leading Tomorrow.”

In December, it will be time to apply to be part of Class VI, and information is available at www.floridabar.org/leadershipacademy.

Wm. Reece Smith, Jr. Leadership Academy Currently, 30 fellows make up Class V, and they recently met at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld, learning everything from Roberts Rules of Order to the DiSC assessment of personality traits.

They join the stellar ranks of previous Leadership Academy graduates that include Fabienne Fahnestock, a 17th Circuit judge; Vivian Cortes Hodz, immediate past president of the Tampa Hispanic Bar Association; Jay Kim, a member of the Bar Board of Governors from the 17th Circuit; Melissa VanSickle, a member of the Bar Board of Governors from the Second Circuit; Nikki Lewis Simon, a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig who is president of the Gwen S. Cherry Black Women Lawyers Association; and Meshon Rawls, president of the Eighth Circuit Bar Association — to name just a few.

“The fellows you meet are complete All-Stars,” said Leadership Academy Committee Chair Kevin McNeill, who has been a committee member since the beginning.

Click Here To read the full article.

Life on Davis Islands Magazine: Meet the Teichman Family

Attorney Harry Teichman and his family were featured in the August issue of Life on Davis Islands Magazine.
To read the featured story, click here.

What To Consider When Hiring An Attorney.

What To Consider When Hiring An Attorney.

Click here to watch the video.

Older Lundy & Alvarez Video

Older Lundy & Alvarez Video: Family Factor

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Older Lundy & Alvarez Video: Allegations of Drug and Alcohol Abuse.

Ben Older, Founding Partner of Older Lundy & Alvarez, shares tips on what do to if you are in a family law case that involves allegations of drug and alcohol abuse.

Click here to watch the video.

The Probate Process

Probate is the court process to distribute assets and pay liabilities of a deceased person (in legal terms, the “decedent”). The personal representative of the decedent represents the decedent during this process, and it is strongly recommended that each personal representative retain experienced legal counsel to handle the probate process to ensure accuracy, efficiency and the proper administration of the decedent’s wishes.

Under Florida law, there are four types of probate administration. The two most common are “formal administration” and “summary administration.” A third type, called “disposition of personal property without administration,” is available for very small estates that satisfy certain conditions. And the fourth type, called “ancillary administration,” is for property outside of Florida and is initiated in the state in which the property is located. More of the differences between the four types of administration will be discussed in our next article.

Probate is necessary only for certain of a decedent’s assets, but probate is required whether or not a decedent had a will. It is noteworthy that the probate process can be much simpler and less expensive when a decedent has a valid will. In any event, all assets owned by a decedent at death that lack a means for automatic transfer of ownership are considered probate assets. Common probate assets include real property (unless it is the homestead of the decedent), motor vehicles, and bank accounts. Assets that are commonly excluded from probate because they transfer automatically as a result of a decedent’s death are financial accounts with “transfer on death” designations and real property that is held as a joint tenancy with the right of survivorship.

The personal representative of the decedent is charged with distributing the decedent’s probate assets to the decedent’s beneficiaries and for paying the decedent’s creditors. However, in order for the beneficiary of a decedent’s probate asset to obtain legal ownership of a particular asset, the probate process must be completed. For Florida residents, a probate case is initiated in the county where the decedent lived at the time of his or her death.

The Florida Probate Code and Florida Probate Rules govern the probate process and can be very complicated in their application. Throughout the probate process, certain steps must be completed within statutorily required time frames. If a particular step is accidentally overlooked or completed with errors, or if an important deadline is missed, it can leave the decedent’s estate, or the beneficiaries of the decedent’s estate, open to litigation for years to come and it can result in a complete waiver of a valuable right.

If you are facing any issue related to any probate matter, please call us immediately. We are always here when you need us.

What is Lifetime Alimony?