Is Disposition Without Administration possible?

[Guest]

Hello,

My father passed away with no Will, no life insurance, a few thousand dollars in credit card debt, a car loan with no credit-life disability insurance, and a bank account with substantially less than the amount required to cover his debt. He also had some issues with the IRS, of which specifics are not known at this time.

He has no real estate property, just some tools and an old antique car that he's had for 20+ years. It isn't registered but may have a title from when he bought it that long ago.

I've paid the funeral expenses out of pocket, and with the amount of money left in his account, after being reimbursed for the funeral expenses he would maybe have enough to make a car payment and pay his cell phone bill.


I'm aware that I'm not liable for his debts or taxes, but I was wondering if I actually needed to file probate and pay a lawyer around $1500 to simply say that there are no real assets and that what's left of his money will go to creditors/IRS.

From what I'm reading about the "Disposition Without Administration" in Florida, his circumstances seem to meet the criteria but he may have too much money left over in his account if the funds are simply meant to reimburse me.

I don't care so much about the money or getting reimbursed, I just don't want to have to spend that money on a Lawyer unnecessarily.


Thanks in advance for sharing any wisdom

 

[Michael Wechsler]

I'm sorry to hear about the passing of your father. Your father's estate may not need to go to probate, especially since there isn't any real estate. You may just need to do a Disposition of Personal Property Without Administration. Here is some self-help information about probate in Florida. Here is the Florida statute covering disposition of an estate without administration.