A will records who should receive your probate property, whom you would like to settle your estate, and whom you nominate to care for your minor children if a guardian is needed. It is the foundation of a will-based plan and, as a pour-over will, an important companion to a trust-based plan. Spiro Verras has practiced law since 1993 and writes every will himself, beginning with a conversation about the people and purposes your plan should serve.
Sign with confidence
Florida has specific execution requirements. For a conventional will, you sign at the end, or acknowledge the signature, before two attesting witnesses, who sign in your presence and in each other’s presence (Fla. Stat. § 732.502). The law also permits someone to sign at your direction in your presence. An unwitnessed handwritten will generally does not satisfy Florida’s requirements. Although a beneficiary may serve as a witness (§ 732.504), using disinterested witnesses helps keep the signing process clear and well documented.
We ordinarily arrange a self-proving affidavit as part of signing your will, with the required acknowledgments and witness affidavits before an authorized officer. A properly self-proved will may be admitted to probate without further proof under section 733.201. That can avoid the need to locate attesting witnesses for routine admission, but it does not prevent a challenge or eliminate testimony that may be needed in a dispute.
The original still matters. The person holding it must deposit it with the clerk within ten days after learning of your death under section 732.901. If an original that was last in your possession cannot be found after your death, a rebuttable presumption of revocation can arise, and establishing a lost will requires additional proof. The Fifth District discussed those requirements in Pilak v. Reigel (2026). We will hold your original in our safe if you wish.
Coordinate the will with the rest of the plan
A will governs property that passes through your probate estate. Retirement accounts, life insurance, annuities, and payable-on-death accounts generally pass under their beneficiary designations, while valid survivorship ownership and funded trusts provide other routes. If a designation fails or names the estate, the result may be different. Spiro reviews the ownership and beneficiary arrangements alongside the will so that they support the same plan.
Florida homestead has special protections for a surviving spouse and minor children. Those protections can restrict how the home is left by will or trust. If the home cannot pass as the document directs, statutory rules apply; when both a spouse and descendants survive, those rules generally provide a life estate for the spouse with a remainder to the descendants, subject to the spouse’s option to elect a one-half ownership interest (§§ 732.401, 732.4015). Other family situations produce different results. A will may also refer to a separate signed list for eligible tangible personal property, such as jewelry and furniture, which you may update without signing a new will (§ 732.515).
Choose the right personal representative
Your personal representative, sometimes called an executor, settles the probate estate. Florida sets eligibility requirements for individuals and restricts which nonresident individuals may serve (§§ 733.303, 733.304). A trusted relative may qualify when an out-of-state friend does not. Naming an alternate provides continuity. Co-personal representatives can be appropriate, but the plan should address how they will communicate, divide responsibilities, and make decisions.
Plan for your children’s care and inheritance
A will can nominate a guardian for your minor children, subject to the surviving parent’s rights and the court’s determination. It can also create a testamentary trust to manage an inheritance, or work with a separate revocable trust. Depending on the amount and arrangement, an outright inheritance for a minor may otherwise require court-supervised management or an authorized custodial arrangement. A trust lets you choose the trustee, purposes, and timing of distributions with your child’s needs in mind.
Keep the plan current as life changes
Marriage, divorce, and the birth or adoption of a child can affect a will and create statutory rights or exceptions (§§ 732.301, 732.302, 732.507). A surviving spouse may also have elective-share rights, subject to the applicable law, valid waivers, and filing requirements. These changes are good reasons for a review. Florida does not enforce a will’s no-contest penalty (§ 732.517), although Spiro may use such a clause to express your wishes and discourage disputes. Clear instructions, careful execution, and an appropriate record of your decisions remain important safeguards.
Understand the role of probate
A will gives the probate court instructions for administering your estate. Court supervision provides a process for identifying beneficiaries, addressing claims, reviewing the personal representative’s work, and confirming distribution through receipts, accounting procedures, and other required filings. That oversight can be reassuring. Florida offers summary administration for qualifying estates based on value or time since death; otherwise, formal administration provides a personal representative with authority to act. A properly funded revocable trust, beneficiary designations, or appropriate deeds may reduce the property needing probate. Trust administration still carries legal duties and beneficiary rights, even though routine court supervision usually is not required. Spiro helps you choose the combination that fits your family.
Contact our office to arrange a consultation with Spiro about estate planning, trusts, or probate. Meet in Palm Harbor, in Tampa or St. Petersburg by appointment, or by Zoom or teleconference.