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Removing deceased son's name from deed

http://epaper.orlandosentinel.com/OS/OS/2010/12/27/index.shtml

Q I helped my son buy a home by having both our names on the deed.
He was a single father raising a young child. He died in an accident a
few months ago and did not have a will.
I now want to sell the home. Can I do that with my son's name on the
deed? If not, is there a simple, inexpensive way to have his name
removed from the deed?
B.M.
KISSIMMEE

A How to best proceed depends on the deed and whether the title was
vested to both of you with "rights of survivorship." If the deed
didn’t mention survivorship, ownership could be deemed a “tenancy in
common” and your son’s heirs may be entitled to possession of the
property.
If a person dies without a will, the first to inherit is the
deceased's spouse and descendant(s). If there’s no spouse or
descendants, then the estate goes to the decedent’s father and mother
equally, or to the survivor of them. As your son was single and
survived by a young child, his child would inherit his estate.
To convey insurable title to the property, probate may be necessary
to declare that the decedent's expenses, debts and taxes do not attach
to the property. Summary Administration – an abbreviated probate
process – is cheapest, provided the estate, excluding exempt property,
doesn’t exceed $75,000.

Question answered by attorney Lawrence H. Kolin

Ask a Lawyer - The Law & You - Orlando Sentinel

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2008-04-14/news/askalawyer14_1_blog-is-based-post-to-blogs-blog-host

Blog at your own risk

April 14, 2008|By Lawrence H. Kolin, Special to the Sentinel

This week, Lawrence H. Kolin, a partner at Alvarez, Sambol & Winthrop, P.A. gives advice about comments posted on the Internet.

Q.

Has your neighbor used a blog to call you a slob? Has someone called your pastor a racist? Is your startup business being trashed on a Web site?

What can you do about blog or discussion board postings that simply aren't true or are offensive?

A.

A growing number of folks are hiring attorneys to sue for defamation, but court battles over Internet content are still new, so there's no telling how these cases eventually will work out.

People who post to blogs or discussion boards are supposed to follow rules set by the blog or board host. Normally, that means not writing things that are harmful, harassing, abusive, threatening, vulgar or obscene, among other prohibitions. Most times, you can find the policies written in the "Terms of Service" found at the bottom of a Web page.

Break the rules, and the comments may be deleted automatically by the blog host or erased following complaints of abuse. But that might not do the trick. The problem is that once posted, defamatory comments often permanently appear in the search-engine results for a person or entity. This can even occur after providers remove the original offending comment.

Discussion boards usually do not allow authors to remove or update messages already posted. Let's face it; there is no such thing as a formal retraction in the blogosphere.

And that's not where the bad news ends. You might feel tempted to respond to the posting, but in doing so, you may make matters worse.

Think of what might appear when you type your name into the Google search box. Adding to an already damaging string might just cause an additional reference to that harmful content. Search engines reward quantity.

So with all of that in mind, additional damage may have happened to you. What can you do?

Because authors are anonymous, you have to sue and use the powers of the court to figure out who the offender is. That's a big hassle. States have different rules for how lawsuits proceed and how subpoenas are served. You might live in one state while the blog is based in another. Not only does this complicate matters, but it could cost you more money because you might have to hire a second lawyer in another state.

Ask a Lawyer - The Law & You - Orlando Sentinel

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-02-11/features/os-ask-a-lawyer-plumbing-problems-01510-20100211_1_concealment-of-pertinent-facts-defect-plumber

The deal is sealed, but now there's a problem

Ask a Lawyer

February 11, 2010

Q Before buying a house recently, I noted a tub with standing water. An inspection by a licensed plumber was inconclusive, but the seller said in his written disclosure that he had no knowledge of any plumbing problems.

It turns out extensive plumbing repairs are needed, and the plumber tells me it's a major, long-standing problem the owner must have known about.

Do I have any recourse?

S.S.

WINTER PARK

A: If the seller did not disclose a known defect under a standard residential real-estate contract, you have grounds for a lawsuit. However, such claims require proof of knowledge, and it's likely your seller will say he had none. Sellers are not obligated to disclose defects of which they are not aware.

In most home sales, the buyer is responsible for inspection by an appropriately licensed person. Typically, the buyer delivers a report of non-warranted items to get credit for repair costs from a seller at closing. If the buyer does not discover the defect until after the closing, then it is tough to back out of the transaction without expensive litigation.

Other possibilities include pursuing the inspector or agent and/or filing complaints with Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Note that licensed Realtors, while not obligated to discover latent defects, have a code of ethics stating they shall avoid concealment of pertinent facts relating to the property.

•Question answered by attorney Lawrence H. Kolin of Alvarez, Sambol & Winthrop, .

Ask a Lawyer - The Law & You - Orlando Sentinel

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/law/os-ask-lawyer-deed-060710-20100531,0,7156021,print.column

House likely not an inheritance

Ask a Lawyer

June 7, 2010

Q My parents bought a house in the 1970s. After my father died, my mother remarried and added my stepfather's name to the deed.

After my mother died, my stepfather remarried and added his wife's name, along with mine, to the deed.

My stepparents, now in an assisted-living home, signed a quitclaim deed to give me the house. When I sell it, do I have to pay capital gains or is it considered an inheritance?

L.B.

ST. CLOUD

A Because your stepparents signed a quitclaim deed, you presumably already are the sole owner of the home and it likely would not be considered an inheritance. Generally speaking, that means you would have to pay capital gains when you sell it.

But how much tax you would have to pay, if any, will depend on a number of other issues and facts not described. The home has gone through a number of transfers, with probates likely involved, which could affect how capital gains are calculated.

You also could benefit from federal gift-tax exemptions of the donors. When gifting more than the annual exclusion to a person in a year, a gift-tax return must be filed. But as long as all gifts do not exceed the lifetime gift credit of $1 million, then no taxes may be owed. You should consult a tax professional with details for a definitive answer.

•Question answered by attorney Lawrence H. Kolin of Alvarez, Sambol & Winthrop, P.A.

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