https://probate.help/blog News, video, and commentary on Florida probate and estate planning, from Rachel Schadt. en-us Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://probate.help/blog/jack-daniels-family-feud-voting-trust https://probate.help/blog/jack-daniels-family-feud-voting-trust Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:00 GMT Brown-Forman's founding family controls the company through a single voting vehicle called Wolf Pen Branch. A hostile takeover offer, a 60% stock slide, and a seven-page letter to 130 relatives are testing whether that structure holds. The tools involved are the same ones Florida families use. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) voting trust dynasty trust business succession family business estate planning https://probate.help/blog/florida-2026-summary-admin-reform https://probate.help/blog/florida-2026-summary-admin-reform Fri, 08 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT The Florida legislature doubled the summary administration threshold from $75k to $150k. Here's who actually qualifies, and the effective-date detail most attorneys are getting wrong. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) summary administration 2026 reform florida probate https://probate.help/blog/2026-federal-estate-tax-exemption https://probate.help/blog/2026-federal-estate-tax-exemption Wed, 06 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT $13.99M per person, $27.98M per couple. Almost no Florida family hits this. Here's what does come up at probate, and the tax filings that actually matter. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) federal estate tax 1041 tax florida probate https://probate.help/blog/why-we-charge-flat-fees https://probate.help/blog/why-we-charge-flat-fees Mon, 04 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Hourly billing is a tax on asking questions. Here's why we don't bill by the hour, what the tradeoff is, and the one rare case where flat fees don't fit. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) flat fees pricing law firm operations https://probate.help/blog/anatomy-of-a-5-week-summary-admin https://probate.help/blog/anatomy-of-a-5-week-summary-admin Sat, 02 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT What summary administration actually looks like, week by week. A composite walkthrough drawn from typical Florida cases — what the family does, what we do, what the court does. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) summary administration case study probate timeline https://probate.help/blog/lady-bird-or-revocable-trust-homestead https://probate.help/blog/lady-bird-or-revocable-trust-homestead Wed, 29 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Both keep the home out of probate. But Florida's homestead rules cut differently for each, and the right answer depends on your specific situation. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) lady bird deed revocable trust homestead florida planning https://probate.help/blog/pr-personal-liability-what-to-know https://probate.help/blog/pr-personal-liability-what-to-know Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT When you accept appointment as personal representative in Florida, you take on real fiduciary duties — and real personal liability if you breach them. Here's what that actually looks like, and how careful PRs avoid the traps. noreply@probate.help (Rachel Schadt) personal representative fiduciary duty PR liability