Larry F. Witte

Trust and Estate Administration

Experienced Lighthouse Point Attorney Advises Trustees and Personal Representatives

Knowledgeable Florida lawyer assists clients with trust and probate administration

Disbursing a trust or settling an estate in probate can be a complicated and confusing process. At the Law Offices of Larry F. Witte, P.A., in Lighthouse Point, an experienced trust and estate administration attorney provides well-informed guidance to individuals named as trustees and personal representatives throughout Florida. Larry Witte will help you successfully fulfill your fiduciary duties.

Meticulous trust administration services

Our goal is to help you navigate the trust administration process. Larry Witte is knowledgeable about all duties expected of a trust administrator, including the following:

  • Investment of assets
  • Management of assets
  • Preparation of accountings
  • Preparation of tax returns
  • Distribution of trust assets to beneficiaries

As a trustee, it is your job to put the interests of the beneficiaries first. Failure to do so could result in you being held liable for any errors that cause losses for the trust. Larry Witte offers sound advice to trustees to ensure accurate and complete compliance with all aspects of trust administration.

Types of trusts we can help administer

Trust administration requires careful attention to each detail when it comes to the grantor’s wishes. The grantor is the person who creates and, in nearly all situations, funds the trust. Our law office assists trustees with the funding and administration of a wide variety of trusts, including the following:

  • Credit shelter trusts (CST)
  • Incentive trusts
  • Living trusts
  • Generation-skipping trusts
  • Qualified terminable interest property trusts (QTIP)
  • Charitable remainder trusts
  • Irrevocable life insurance trusts

Different types of trusts have different rules and requirements for administration and distribution to beneficiaries. Larry Witte understands the intricacies and complexities of different trust types and can counsel you throughout the administration and disbursement processes.

Estate administration and probate

Probate is the court process of validating a decedent’s will and distributing the decedent’s assets to the beneficiaries. When you are appointed as the personal representative of a decedent’s estate, there are numerous steps involved in the probate process that must be accurately carried out. We can assist you with all aspects of probate and estate administration, including the following:

  • Filing the will with the Florida probate court
  • Developing the best strategy for fairly and expeditiously administering the estate
  • Finding and collecting assets
  • Paying debts owed by the decedent and paying estate taxes
  • Closing and opening bank accounts
  • Transferring assets from the deceased to the estate
  • Locating beneficiaries
  • Hiring valuation professionals, accountants and other experts when needed
  • Helping resolve potential disputes that may arise involving beneficiaries
  • Valuing, managing, preserving and liquidating the estate

There may be other duties you are responsible for, depending upon the estate. Larry Witte will answer your questions about different facets of the estate settlement process to help ensure that there are no errors and your fiduciary duties as personal representative are carried out in accordance with Florida law.  

How we can help if contests arise

Throughout the estate administration process, several issues may arise. Beneficiaries and/or heirs may question your competency as a personal representative, alleging that you aren’t fulfilling your duties or that you are acting contrary to the instructions in the will. The validity of a decedent’s will may also be challenged, with beneficiaries and/or heirs claiming their deceased loved one was coerced or the victim of undue influence when creating the document.

No matter what issue is involved in a dispute, our firm will work diligently to resolve it effectively and quickly. 

Contact a thorough estate and trust administration lawyer in Florida

Larry Witte at the Law Offices of Larry F. Witte, P.A. in Lighthouse Point effectively assists Floridians acting as trustees and personal representatives of estates in carrying out their fiduciary duties. Call 954-919-2438 or contact us online to schedule a consultation.