Wills, Probate

Trusts, Estate Planning

210 South Beach Street, Suite 202
Daytona Beach, FL 32114
(386) 257-3332

Personal Representative

In Heidi, I have found my Florida attorney. I live out of state but have a home in Florida which I wanted to turn over to my son, who does live in Florida, without running into tax issues. I was imagining all sorts of paper work, but Heidi made it all so simple for me and I was very satisfied with her knowledge and professionalism. What’s more, she is a very nice person and so easy to deal with. I have no hesitation in recommending her and will certainly use her again if the need arises.

~ Meme D

I was looking for a lawyer to update my estate papers from another state and a friend recommended Heidi Webb. I could not be happier with the process and results I received. Heidi is very low-key and thorough in her questioning to get all the necessary information needed.

~ Elaine A

probate process

Probate & Estate Planning

Probate and Estate planning are two distinct parts of my practice and clients often ask me what is the difference between Estate Planning and Probate.

Here are the two definitions according to the American Bar Association:

Estate planning

A process by which an individual designs a strategy and executes a will, trust agreement, or other documents to provide for the administration of his or her assets upon his or her incapacity or death. Tax and liquidity planning are part of this process.

Probate

The court-supervised process of proving the validity of a will and distributing property under the terms of the will or in accordance with a state’s intestacy law in the absence of a will.

In my words: Estate Planning is creating an exit strategy that often involves putting your wishes down on paper and/or managing beneficiary designations so that your property efficiently passes after your death while Probate is a court assisted process following your death that may involve effectuating your wishes or may impose what the law says should happen if you did not do any planning. Both can manage/transfer your assets post-death but estate planning happens while you are alive and probate after death.

Side note: Estate Planning & Probate are not mutually exclusive. Many think having an estate plan must avoid the probate process for their heirs after they pass and while MOST plans are geared towards probate avoidance, sometimes in Florida a Summary Probate is PART of the Estate Plan [that is a subject for another blog that I promise to write ☺ ].

Heidi S. Webb, Attorney at Law, serves clients all over the state of Florida with Estate Planning and Probate. She has offices in Daytona Beach and Melbourne but can meet via phone or Zoom with clients statewide. Contact her today to schedule a free consultation. Visit her page on Facebook or see what her clients are saying to learn more about Heidi at www.heidiwebb.com.

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