Comments for The Harry Thomas Hackney Florida Law Blog

Comment on Will Richard Fuld’s “Scam” Work? by hthackney

hthackney — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:32:53 +0000

Coincidentally, I was reading The Florida Asset Protection Blog (http://floridaassetprotection.blogs.com/alperlaw/ ) by attorney Jonathan Alper and he has written specifically about tenancy-by-the-entireties as it applies to non-Florida residents. He very succinctly and more elegantly explains it. That post can be found at http://floridaassetprotection.blogs.com/alperlaw/2009/07/-tenants-by-entireties-does-not-depend-upon-florida-residency-.html

Comment on Will Richard Fuld’s “Scam” Work? by hthackney

hthackney — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 02:11:21 +0000

You have to be a Florida resident to claim the constitutional homestead exemption, as noted in the post. If either spouse is a Florida resident and they have a primary residence in Florida, then that spouse can claim the homestead exemption for the home. Thus, even if Richard is not a Florida resident, Mrs. Fuld can claim the home as her homestead if she is a Florida resident.

As for property that is a tenancy-by-the-entireties, it is presumed that real property owned jointly by a married couple in Florida is a tenancy-by-the-entireties. The creditor exemption arises because each spouse has a right to the whole property and that right can not be severed by either spouse alone. Thus, a creditor of just one spouse cannot deprive the non-debtor spouse of his or her right to the whole. You don’t have to be a Florida resident to own property in Florida and the entireties exemption has nothing to do with Florida residency. I am not, however, a bankruptcy lawyer. I suppose that if you are the resident of another state and you file bankruptcy, that entireties property in Florida may not get the same treatment if you are entitled to bankruptcy exemptions based on the law of another state. However, as it pertains to the enforcement of a judgment outside of bankruptcy court, entireties property would be exempt from the creditors of one spouse regardless of residency.

Comment on Beware the Forgotten Spouse! by hthackney

hthackney — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 01:51:05 +0000

The statute governing the elective share of a surviving spouse says: “The surviving spouse of a person who dies domiciled in Florida …” It is the deceased spouse who has to die in Florida in order for the surviving spouse to claim an elective share. The elective share does not really have anything to do with exemptions from creditors, which is another issue. The relevance of tenancies-by-the-entireties property here is that it automatically belongs to the surviving spouse. The exemption of entireties property from the creditors of one spouse has nothing to do with whether both spouses are Florida residents. It arises because of the nature of entireties property. Each spouse has a right to the whole property so no creditor of either spouse alone can deprive the non-debtor spouse of that right to the whole.

Comment on Beware the Forgotten Spouse! by Ed Petti

Ed Petti — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 02:03:30 +0000

Same question here as in the Fulk example. Once the husband leaves Florida and establishes his residence or domicile in another state, such as Virgina, he is no longer a resident of Florida. AS a nonresident of Florida, does’t he lose the immunity from creditors for the Florida tbe property. Are there any cases supporting the proposition that the immunity from claims of non-joint creditors is an immunity available to nonresidents of Florida who have a tbe interest in Florida real estate?

Comment on Will Richard Fuld’s “Scam” Work? by Ed Petti

Ed Petti — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 01:47:33 +0000

How could Richard Fulk claim a tbe interest in the Florida property if he was not a resident of Florida. Isn’t the tbe immunity from claims of creditors an FLA exemption, only available to Florida residents.

Comment on Beware of the Roommate! by hthackney

hthackney — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:41:56 +0000

Steve raises some valid issues. There would be no contractual agreement between the roommate and the landlord. Consequently, the roommate would have no liability on the lease to the landlord. Part II of Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes applies to residential tenancies whether there is a lease or not. A landlord can terminate the rental by giving the tenant(s) 15 days notice before the next rental payment is due. The first step to getting rid of an unwanted roommate would be to ask them to leave. If they do not leave, I’m not sure exactly sure what your next step would be. It could be that as between you and your roommate that you are the “landlord” and can give 15 days notice and then “evict” the roommate. However, I’ve never encountered that situation so I don’t know for sure. (Most people don’t hire lawyers to evict roommates.)

Comment on Beware of the Roommate! by Steve Nuin

Steve Nuin — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:38:59 +0000

These tales of woe do not distinguish if both tenants are on the lease. Does it make a difference? Many times, only one person’s name is on the lease, then they advertise for a roommate. Is the person coming on board as a sub-tenant liable if their not on lease? And would if there is no lease to begin with, a month-to-month, which is my situation? How about kicking out this sub-renter in that situation?

For example, in Florida, do Landlord-Tenant Notice laws apply in a situation where, #1, there is no lease between main tenant and landlord (month-to-month), and no lease between person who comes on board later as a “roommate”?

I have such a situation and am extremely curious what I have to do to get rid of my roommate who is always late paying his agreed rent and share of utilities…

Comment on Estate Planning For the Average American by STEVEN J. FROMM, ATTORNEY, LL.M. (TAXATION)

STEVEN J. FROMM, ATTORNEY, LL.M. (TAXATION) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:57:23 +0000

Harry: This is really a compelling piece for your readers. Perhaps they may be further persuaded and enlightened by the estate planning implications raised by the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett as explored in an article entitled Michael Jackson & Farrah Fawcett: Estate Plan Wake Up Call by visiting my blog at wttp://frommtaxes.wordpress.com
I hope this is value to your clients and friends

Comment on A Lawyer’s Dream: Michael Jackson’s Estate by The best of Michael Jackson

The best of Michael Jackson — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 06:47:56 +0000

Michael Jackson is the best entertainer ever. For the life of me I don’t know why people can’t see that this man was thirsty 4 lov, he had no child hood and no one 2 realy love him 4 him. all his life he amid 2 please everyone. So if you don’t no anything about this man don’t judge this man…..OK !

Comment on What Is A Will? by A Lawyer’s Dream: Michael Jackson’s Estate « The Harry Thomas Hackney Florida Law Blog

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 19:03:12 +0000

[...] a trust (or trusts). According to one attorney,most celebrities have living trusts. If he has a will or if he died intestate, there is likely to be a delay while a personal representative (a/k/a an [...]