Martin Deptula specializing in Family Law & Commercial Litigation.
For full bio, click here.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
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.
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.
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
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.
To read the featured story, click here.
Tuesday, August 8, 2017
Thursday, July 20, 2017
Thursday, July 6, 2017
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.
Monday, May 22, 2017
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.
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.
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