What's new. Plainly explained.

Jack Daniel's maker Brown-Forman, the $15 billion Sazerac bid, Wolf Pen Branch family voting control, and how Florida voting trusts and voting agreements work

Brown family members hold 60.3% of Brown-Forman's voting Class A shares through Wolf Pen Branch, LP, which rejected a Sazerac offer reported at $15 billion, or $32 per share. Florida law has two comparable tools: the voting trust in § 607.0730 and the voting agreement in § 607.0731.

2026 federal estate tax exemption of $15,000,000: Florida has no estate tax, and the Form 1040, Form 1041 and portability rules for a Florida death

The 2026 federal basic exclusion amount is $15,000,000 per person. Florida imposes no estate tax for deaths after December 31, 2004. This post lists the federal estate tax rules and the income tax returns an estate can require, each with its source.

Florida summary administration step by step: the steps, notices and deadlines the statutes and rules set, with an illustrative example

Each step of a Florida summary administration, in order, with the statute or rule that sets it. The example estate is invented and illustrates the steps. It is not a real client or a real timeline.

Florida 2026 probate reform: what changed, chapter 2026-57 and the $150,000 summary administration limit

Chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida, raised the summary administration limit from $75,000 to $150,000 effective July 1, 2026, and changed three smaller thresholds and several personal representative provisions. This post lists each change with its section.

Lady Bird deed (enhanced life estate deed) or revocable trust for a Florida homestead: probate, Save Our Homes, creditor protection, devise limits and Medicaid estate recovery under Florida statutes

Both a life estate deed that reserves the owner's powers and a funded revocable trust can move a Florida home outside probate. The statutes that decide the homestead questions are Art. X, § 4, Fla. Const., and §§ 732.4015, 193.155, 196.031 and 409.9101, Fla. Stat.

Florida personal representative personal liability: fiduciary duty under § 733.602 and § 733.609, creditor claims under §§ 733.702, 733.705 and 733.710, individual liability under § 733.619, resignation, and discharge under § 733.901

A Florida personal representative is a fiduciary held to the standards of a trustee and is liable to interested persons for damage or loss from a breach of duty. This post lists the statutes and probate rule that set those duties, the claim deadlines, and how discharge ends the role.