Posted in Asset Protection,Business & Corporate Law
Chapter 621 of the Florida Statutes governs professional service corporations and professional limited liability companies. For an entity to file under this chapter, the practitioner must be engaged in a professional service. A “professional service” is a type of service to the public that requires the performing individual to obtain a license or other legal authorization before engaging in practice.[1] Examples of professional services in Florida include certified public accountants, public accountants, chiropractic physicians, dentists, osteopathic physicians, physicians and surgeons, doctors of medicine, doctors of dentistry, podiatric physicians, chiropodists, architects, veterinarians, attorneys at law, and life insurance agents.[2]
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Section 736.0708 of the Florida Statutes governs the compensation available to Florida trustees. Most trust documents provide reasonable compensation to the named trustee. However, if the trust document is silent on the matter, Chapter 736 provides that the trustee is entitled to reasonable compensation under the circumstances.[1] Accordingly, a Florida court may award reasonable compensation when the trust documents neglect the issue.
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Posted in Real Estate Law,Tax Law & IRS Defense
The Firm is republishing a September 2013 blog post regarding the ability of Florida property owners to contest or appeal the assessed value of their property. The republished blog, below, includes updated information for 2014.
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The Florida Department of Revenue is authorized to levy a documentary stamp tax on deeds, bonds, promissory notes, written obligations to pay money, mortgages, liens, and other evidences of indebtedness. Florida law authorizes different taxation rates depending on the type of transaction. The documentary stamp tax is typically $0.70 per every $100.00 of consideration for instruments conveying an interest in real property including, but not limited to, deeds, easements, and contracts or agreements for deed.[1] Alternatively, the documentary stamp tax for bonds, mortgages, liens, promissory notes, and other written obligations to pay money is generally $0.35 per every $100.00 of consideration.[2] The documentary stamp tax for promissory notes or other written obligations to pay money typically may not exceed $2,450.[3]
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Posted in Asset Protection,Probate & Trust Administration,Real Estate Law,Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning
Many married couples jointly own their home or other Florida real property. It is easy to overlook the legal transfer of such jointly held property when faced with the death of a husband or wife. However, clearing title to real estate following the death of a loved one is an important consideration and should be promptly addressed by the surviving family and a licensed Florida attorney where possible.
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Whether filling out your new hire paperwork or preparing your tax returns, the IRS has guidelines for who may be claimed as a dependent for income tax purposes.
There are typically two types of dependents for federal income tax purposes:
In a previous blog, (click for link), we posted about the importance of asset titling in estate planning and briefly described how beneficiary designation forms may implicate your personal plan. Beneficiary designations are intended to be a straightforward method for heirs to circumvent the probate process and receive funds in a timely manner. Beneficiary designations are found in many of your accounts, including retirement accounts, life insurance policies, bank accounts, stocks, certificates of deposits, bonds, mutual funds, and annuity contracts.
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Posted in Business & Corporate Law
Eleven states, including Florida, have laws that prohibit businesses from imposing consumers with surcharges on credit card transactions. But what type of businesses are subject to this prohibition? All businesses? Only merchants and retailers? Currently, the concept of charging surcharge or convenience fees for credit card usage by service business is not clearly addressed in the applicable statute. Florida Statute Section 501.0117(1) states that a “seller or lessor in a sales or lease transaction may not impose a surcharge on the buyer or lessee for electing to use a credit card in lieu of payment of cash, check, or similar means, if the seller or lessor accepts payment by credit card.” Moreover, a surcharge is defined as any additional amount imposed at the time of a sale or lease transaction by the seller or lessor that increases the charge to the buyer or lessee for the privilege of using a credit card to make payment. Id.
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