Everyone needs:
1. Living Will
2. Last
Will & Testament
3. Healthcare Surrogate Designation - often a domestic partner
4. Springing Durable
Power of Attorney - usually a domestic partner
Gay lesbian LGBT GLBT partners often request:
1. An enhanced life estate deed otherwise referred to as a lady bird deed vesting a remainder interest
with their gay or lesbian life partner. Before our current economy and the risk of a domestic partner filing for bankruptcy,
many requested revocable living trusts - WARNING: a revocable trust does not permit you to devise homestead property
in a way that is prohibited by Florida's Constitution.
2. Domestic Partnership Agreement - If you don't
put it in writing unmarried partners are treated as roommates would be in all of Florida including Tampa, Sarasota, St. Pete,
Orlando, Ocala, or New Port Richey - the area served by Jonas Urba.
3. Enhanced life estate deeds are usually encouraged
in lieu of quitclaim deeds into a revocable trust or as joint tenants with rights of survivorship - WARNING: bankruptcy of either tenant may affect homestead protection of joint owners and when
one or both partners have minor children Florida's Constitution may prohibit alienation of Florida homestead, which most
people never think about.
4. Bills of Sale into Trust
5. Trust for Pets
Gay
lesbian lgbt glbt moms / dads usually request:
1. A coparenting Agreement even when some of them have
lawfully been married in other states / countries - remember that divorces invalidate some documents.
2. Pre-need
Guardian designation for Minors
3. Trust for Minors
Gay
probate:
1. If you died without a Last Will and your gay, lesbian, lgbt, glbt domestic partner is
not biologically related to you, do not expect any Florida Probate Court to permit your gay, lesbian, lgbt, glbt, partner
to inherit any of your property. Even if you titled homestead property as joint owners with full rights of survivorship
your surviving gay or lesbian partner may not receive the homestead if your minor children (known or unknown) survive
you. Bisexual men must be especially cautious or their domestic partner may not inherit the homestead both believed
he would. Written documents and titling real estate properly are essential!!!
Don't let the State decide who gets your property!
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Whether you live in Tampa, St. Pete, Orlando, Sarasota, Ocala,
Orlando, Lakeland, or New Port Richey, consult with a Florida lawyer and have them draft a Last Will & Testament
for you and make sure it is executed properly and is self-proving. If you want your domestic partner to inherit
your property you better say so in an error-free typewritten document which is properly executed and which does
not include any hand-written changes post-document execution. There is a very good reason why many notary publics
no longer notarize last wills, powers of attorney and other important legal documents. There are simply too many
things which can be overlooked and create potential challenges. Your last will may be the only document which survives
your death and your domestic partner will need to rely on it. You will no longer be around to interpret it.
Be very careful when appointing someone as your Attorney in Fact. Consider a Springing Durable Power of Attorney
to prevent anyone from having power unless and until you are incapacitated. The person you give this power to (most
often your domestic partner) will have the legal authority to initiate litigation on your behalf if someone's
improper actions placed you in a coma.
Don't let lawyers litigate your life and death wishes for decades
like we saw with Terri Schiavo. Make sure your living will specifies why your domestic partner supercedes biological
family members from making those decisions for you.
Allow your partner to speak with your doctors by executing
a clearly drafted Healthcare Surrogate Designation so they can visit you in the hospital and can have access to your medical
records as well as consult with your doctors.
Do you really love your Life Partner?
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If you answered yes then it is in your best interest to hire
a professional to draft a domestic partnership or cohabitation agreement for you. If you are in a coma, how
will your domestic / life partner prove that money or other jointly titled property is at least half theirs?
What if your domestic partner who is now in a coma earned most of the jointly held property? If
a Florida Court appoints a biological family member as your legal guardian how will the noncomatose domestic / life partner
secure at least half the jointly owned property? They could end up homeless.
Caring partners execute partnership
agreements understanding that lack of trust of their partner is not the motivating factor. If you have been married
in a state where gay marriage is legal make sure to tell your lawyer.
If one of you has minor kids
(known or unknown) and you own Florida homestead property titled as joint tenants with full rights of survivorship it's
time to see a lawyer. You do not want to find out after your Life Partner's death that the homestead property which
says with full rights of survivorship does not mean what you thought it meant. Florida's Constitution may prevent
you from inheriting the property you helped pay for.
Protect your pets if both of you are no longer
able to care for them. Many persons who have lost or are losing their homes are also abandoning their pets.
If you can no longer care for them ask a friend who is able to care for them to take over for you rather than burden the government
which is already overwhelmed with unplanned abandonment. Make sure your wishes are clearly in writing.
Co-parenting agreements and gay divorce
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Regardless of gender or marital status many couples in the United
States call it quits.
Make sure your kids don't suffer. Remember that they are usually very close to
both of you. Even if the two of you can no longer work it out that does not mean the kids should lose a very loved family
member. Co-parenting agreements keep you out of the court system and spell out your wishes that your kids should not
suffer the loss of friendship of either one of you even if the Life Partners break up.
Jonas can not tell you how
many times he sees coparenting agreements drafted in other states or drafted pro se (without lawyers) which simply can not
be enforced in Florida. Jonas will not recommend the enforcement of a co-parenting agreement with same gender couples through
formal legal action in a Florida courtroom. On the other hand, if your agreement provides for mandatory mediation or
arbitration, enforcement may not be out of the question. Make sure you speak with a lawyer who works with such issues
on a regular basis.
