Estate Planning and Tax Lawyer Blog

There are many couples in the Jacksonville, Florida and throughout the State of Florida who face the problem of setting up an estate plan for their partner when they choose not to be married or are not legally allowed to be married.  Married couples may take advantage of the unlimited marital deduction when creating their estate plan both to balance their estates (gifting while alive) and deferring estate taxes (upon the death of the first).  This is deduction is not available to partners who are not married.  However, Florida specifically has additional hurdles to overcome for those of you who are in this specific situation. 

Florida homestead laws state that the homestead must pass to the surviving spouse and then lineal descendants free of the creditors of the first spouse to die.  Since surviving partners are specifically not given the protection under Florida’s homestead laws, it is very important that the first partner to die does not have any unexpected medical bills or large creditors.  The creditors may cause the home to be sold in order to satisfy the outstanding debt, leaving your partner without your home.

The Florida Health Care Surrogate and Durable Power of Attorney statutes do not include partners as next of kin in determining who you may serve as your surrogate/power of attorney.  If you do not have any documentation in place for this, your partner will be left out of the decision making process for you.

Finally, if you have no estate plan in place at all, a partner will receive nothing under the will that the State of Florida has set up for you.  So if it is your intent to pass assets onto your partner, you will want to have a valid estate plan set up.

If you would like to discuss the estate planning issues relating to same sex or unwed couples in the Jacksonville, Florida and throughout the State of Florida, please consult with an estate planning attorney who is knowledgeable with the issues being raised by your specific situations.