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Every young adult in Texas should have these two important legal documents before going away to college: Financial Power of Attorney and Medical Power of Attorney. You can have these important documents custom-made for you by a Texas-licensed attorney without even having to leave your home. 

Every young adult in Florida should have these two important legal documents before going away to college: Power of Attorney and Advance Healthcare Directives. You can have these important documents custom-made for you by a Florida-licensed attorney without even having to leave your home. 

When you are a Florida residential Landlord and have a Tenant who has stopped paying rent, you have legal recourse available to you to protect your property and your rights.  Eviction is a two-step process.  First, proper notice must be given to the Tenant to pay past due rent or surrender the pr...

Do you already have an estate plan? If so, is it good or is it great? Even if you have not done any planning, where do you begin? How do you hire an attorney that will draft you a GREAT plan? I would like to begin by saying something about the deceptive name of this particular area of law. Estate...

This story really touched me, so I want to share it and hope it can help someone avoid a similar mistake. I received a call from a potential client. He told me his mother passed away and left her home to her disabled daughter, the caller's sister. The called wanted me to assist with probate admin...

First things first. What is estate planning? Estate Planning that an attorney can assist you with is putting in place documents that protect you, your family and your assets in the event of your death or incapacity. Common documents that come to mind are Wills and Trusts, but these are just the b...

Our firm recently received an e-mail from a potential Client who wrote that she needs an updated Last Will and Testament. She was told by acquaintances that she can just buy a will template from an office supply store and asked for my opinion on whether she should save the money. NO, I wrote to h...

Check Florida's unclaimed property website for your name. You may have money owed to you. You can also check for deceased family members.  https://www.fltreasurehunt.org/ControlServlet?ActionForm=GotoNewPublicSearch

There are two main things basic estate planning is supposed to plan for: death and incapacity. The importance of planning for incapacity tends to get forgotten, probably because people have more experience with someone they know dying (death is 100% guaranteed after all) and less so with the burd...

An old lady had a hearing-aid fitted, hidden underneath her hair. A week later she returned to the doctor for her check-up. “It's wonderful – I can hear everything now,” she reported very happily to the doctor. “And is your family pleased, too?” asked the doctor. “Oh I haven't told them yet,” sai...

A Will (Last Will and Testament) is a document that, if properly executed, directs distribution of a person's assets after his or her death. The distribution is accomplished through a process called probate administration. See my upcoming post on who needs a Will and who does not. A Trust is a le...

Almost everyone knows what a Will is. In Florida, a valid Will is a Will that was made and executed for a resident of another state, in compliance with that state's requirements. In other words, if a Will is valid in the state it is from, it will be valid in Florida. Another way to have a valid W...

Many people call Bevilacqua Law, P.A. asking to meet because they need a will. Many times, after meeting with the Client, I tell them they do not need a will. Why? Because the people they want to leave their assets to are the same people that will inherit those same assets under Florida law anywa...