732.101 Intestate estate.
(1) Any part of the estate of a decedent not effectively disposed of by will
passes to the decedent's heirs as prescribed in the following sections of this
code.
(2) The decedent's death is the event that vests the heirs' right to the
decedent's intestate property.
732.102 Spouse's share of intestate estate.
The intestate share of the surviving spouse is:
(1) If there is no surviving lineal descendant of the decedent, the entire
intestate estate.
(2) If there are surviving lineal descendants of the decedent, all of whom are
also lineal descendants of the surviving spouse, the first $60,000 of the
intestate estate, plus one-half of the balance of the intestate estate. Property
allocated to the surviving spouse to satisfy the $60,000 shall be valued at the
fair market value on the date of distribution.
(3) If there are surviving lineal descendants, one or more of whom are not
lineal descendants of the surviving spouse, one-half of the intestate estate.
732.103 Share of other heirs.
The part of the intestate estate not passing to the surviving spouse under s.
732.102, or the entire intestate estate if there is no surviving spouse,
descends as follows:
(1) To the lineal descendants of the decedent.
(2) If there is no lineal descendant, to the decedent's father and mother
equally, or to the survivor of them.
(3) If there is none of the foregoing, to the decedent's brothers and sisters
and the descendants of deceased brothers and sisters.
(4) If there is none of the foregoing, the estate shall be divided, one-half of
which shall go to the decedent's paternal, and the other half to the decedent's
maternal, kindred in the following order:
(a) To the grandfather and grandmother equally, or to the survivor of them.
(b) If there is no grandfather or grandmother, to uncles and aunts and
descendants of deceased uncles and aunts of the decedent.
(c) If there is either no paternal kindred or no maternal kindred, the estate
shall go to the other kindred who survive, in the order stated above.
(5) If there is no kindred of either part, the whole of the property shall go to
the kindred of the last deceased spouse of the decedent as if the deceased
spouse had survived the decedent and then died intestate entitled to the estate.
(6) If none of the foregoing, and if any of the descendants of the decedent's
great-grandparents were Holocaust victims as defined in 1s. 626.9543(3)(b),
including such victims in countries cooperating with the discriminatory policies
of Nazi Germany, then to the lineal descendants of the great-grandparents. The
court shall allow any such descendant to meet a reasonable, not unduly
restrictive, standard of proof to substantiate his or her lineage. This
subsection only applies to escheated property and shall cease to be effective
for proceedings filed after December 31, 2004.
732.104 Inheritance per stirpes.
Descent shall be per stirpes, whether to lineal descendants or to collateral
heirs.
732.105 Half blood.
When property descends to the collateral kindred of the intestate and part of
the collateral kindred are of the whole blood to the intestate and the other
part of the half blood, those of the half blood shall inherit only half as much
as those of the whole blood; but if all are of the half blood they shall have
whole parts.
732.107 Escheat.
(1) When a person dies leaving an estate without being survived by any person
entitled to a part of it, that part shall escheat to the state.
(2) Property that escheats shall be sold as provided in the Florida Probate
Rules and the proceeds paid to the Chief Financial Officer of the state and
deposited in the State School Fund.
(3) At any time within 10 years after the payment to the Chief Financial
Officer, a person claiming to be entitled to the proceeds may reopen the
administration to assert entitlement to the proceeds. If no claim is timely
asserted, the state's rights to the proceeds shall become absolute.
(4) The Department of Legal Affairs shall represent the state in all proceedings
concerning escheated estates.
(5)(a) If a person entitled to the proceeds assigns the rights to receive
payment to an attorney, Florida-certified public accountant, or private
investigative agency which is duly licensed to do business in this state
pursuant to a written agreement with that person, the Department of Financial
Services is authorized to make distribution in accordance with the assignment.
(b) Payments made to an attorney, Florida-certified public accountant, or
private investigative agency shall be promptly deposited into a trust or escrow
account which is regularly maintained by the attorney, Florida-certified public
accountant, or private investigative agency in a financial institution
authorized to accept such deposits and located in this state.
(c) Distribution by the attorney, Florida-certified public accountant, or
private investigative agency to the person entitled to the proceeds shall be
made within 10 days following final credit of the deposit into the trust or
escrow account at the financial institution, unless a party to the agreement
protests the distribution in writing before it is made.
(d) The department shall not be civilly or criminally liable for any proceeds
distributed pursuant to this subsection, provided such distribution is made in
good faith.
|