Estate litigation in Florida is the formal court process used to resolve disputes that arise during the administration of a deceased person’s estate. When heirs disagree over the validity of a will, the conduct of a personal representative, the size of a creditor’s claim, or how assets should be distributed, those fights are litigated within the probate case under Chapters 731 through 735 of the Florida Statutes. In Palm Beach County, these disputes are heard in the probate division of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.
I have spent years on both sides of these cases, and the pattern is remarkably consistent. The will is rarely the only thing in play. Behind almost every heir dispute sits a tangle of unpaid creditors, ambiguous account titling, a caregiver who got too close, or a personal representative who confused the estate’s checkbook with their own. This article walks through how these disputes actually unfold in Florida, with particular attention to the creditor-and-claims side of estate fights, which is where Palm Beach estates so often come apart.
Why Heirs End Up in Court: The Common Triggers
Most people assume estate litigation means a will contest. Sometimes it does. But in practice, heir disputes cluster around a handful of recurring problems:
- Will and codicil contests based on undue influence, lack of capacity, fraud, or improper execution.
- Breach of fiduciary duty by a personal representative who self-deals, hides assets, or pays themselves unreasonable fees.
- Disputed creditor claims, where heirs and the estate fight over whether a debt is real, timely, and enforceable.
- Asset ownership fights over jointly titled accounts, payable-on-death designations, and property the decedent allegedly transferred before death.
- Construction and interpretation disputes, where the will’s language is ambiguous and beneficiaries read it differently.
- Accounting objections, when an heir believes the numbers reported to the court do not add up.
What makes Florida distinctive is how aggressively the statutes police deadlines. Miss one, and a meritorious objection can vanish overnight. That single feature drives more outcomes than the underlying facts.
Will Contests in Florida: Capacity, Undue Influence, and the Burden of Proof
A will contest challenges whether the document the court is asked to honor is legally valid. The four classic grounds are lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence, fraud, and improper execution under Section 732.502, which requires two witnesses and the testator’s signature.
How the burden shifts
Under Section 733.107, the proponent of the will first has to establish its formal execution and attestation. Once that prima facie showing is made, the contestant carries the burden of proving the grounds for invalidating it. Undue influence is the most litigated of these grounds, and Florida law gives contestants a meaningful tool: if you can show that a person who was a substantial beneficiary occupied a confidential relationship with the decedent and was active in procuring the will, a presumption of undue influence arises and the burden of proof shifts to the person defending the will.
That shifting burden, codified in Section 733.107(2), is not a technicality. It is often the entire ballgame. I have seen cases turn on whether the favored beneficiary drove the decedent to the lawyer’s office, knew the contents of the will before signing, or kept the document afterward. Florida courts weigh these “active procurement” factors, drawn from the long-cited In re Estate of Carpenter decision, to decide whether the presumption applies.
The three-month wall
Here is where many otherwise-strong contests die. Under Section 733.212, an interested person served with formal notice of administration must file any objection challenging the will’s validity, the venue, or the court’s jurisdiction within three months of service. The statute is brutally strict: the period can be extended only for estoppel based on a misstatement by the personal representative about the deadline itself, and for nothing else. Not for late discovery of facts. Not for the PR’s silence. If you are served and you sit on your rights, the contest is gone.
Creditor Claims and Estate Litigation: The Palm Beach Reality
This is the part of estate litigation that gets the least attention and causes the most damage. Florida estates do not pass cleanly to heirs until the decedent’s debts are addressed, and the claims process is a frequent battleground, especially for the larger, asset-rich estates common in Palm Beach.
The personal representative must publish a notice to creditors and serve known or reasonably ascertainable creditors directly. Creditors then have a window to file claims, generally three months from first publication, or thirty days from service if served later. A claim filed late, absent an extension granted by the court for good cause, is barred. The two-year non-claim deadline under Section 733.710 is an absolute backstop: creditor claims not filed within two years of death are forever cut off, with narrow exceptions.
Objecting to claims
When a claim looks inflated, fabricated, or unenforceable, the PR or any interested person, including an heir, may object. Under Section 733.705, an objection must generally be filed on or before the later of four months from first publication of the notice to creditors or thirty days from the timely filing of the claim. Once an objection is filed and served, the creditor has thirty days to file an independent action to enforce the claim, or it is barred. These overlapping clocks reward the prepared and punish the slow.
Why do heirs care so much about creditor claims? Because every dollar paid to a creditor is a dollar that does not reach a beneficiary. I have litigated cases where the “creditor” was a relative claiming reimbursement for years of informal caregiving with no contract, no invoices, and no contemporaneous records. Whether that claim survives an objection can swing an inheritance by six figures. Heirs who ignore the claims docket and focus only on the will are often fighting the wrong battle.
Fiduciary Litigation: When the Personal Representative Is the Problem
A Florida personal representative is a fiduciary. They must inventory assets, give notice, manage property prudently, pay valid debts, account to the beneficiaries, and distribute what remains. When they breach those duties, beneficiaries have real remedies.
The most common fiduciary disputes involve:
- Self-dealing, such as selling estate property to themselves or an entity they control at a discount.
- Failure to account, or filing an accounting so vague it cannot be audited.
- Unreasonable fees for the PR or their attorney, which Section 733.6171 ties to a presumptive schedule that the court can adjust.
- Improper distributions that prefer one beneficiary or pay heirs before creditors are resolved, exposing the PR to personal liability.
A beneficiary can petition to compel an accounting, to surcharge the PR for losses caused by misconduct, and ultimately to remove the PR under Section 733.504, which lists grounds including maladministration, wasting assets, and conflicts of interest. Removal is a serious step, and Florida judges do not order it casually, but a documented pattern of stonewalling or self-dealing will get there.
How These Cases Are Actually Resolved
Despite the dramatic framing, the large majority of Florida estate disputes settle. The probate court can compel mediation, and most Palm Beach probate judges expect the parties to mediate before consuming trial time. Settlements are frequently memorialized in a family settlement agreement that reallocates shares, resolves claims, and releases the personal representative, all approved by the court.
Litigation that does go to a hearing is tried to the judge, not a jury. That changes strategy considerably. There is no theater for a panel of twelve; there is a careful jurist who has seen every variation of these fights and who reads the file. Credibility, documentation, and clean compliance with the statutory deadlines matter far more than rhetoric.
For families with assets or relatives in more than one state, the process can become more complex. New York estates, for instance, follow a different track through Surrogate’s Court, and the procedural distinctions matter when ancillary administration is involved. Our colleagues explain the basics of a and outline the for families navigating multi-state estates. For Florida-specific administration and litigation, our Florida probate practice handles the full range of contested and uncontested matters.
Protecting Yourself Before a Dispute Starts
The cheapest estate litigation is the kind that never happens. A well-drafted, properly witnessed will, supported by contemporaneous evidence of capacity and free of the active-procurement red flags, is enormously harder to attack. Clear titling of accounts, candid conversations with heirs, and a competent independent personal representative remove most of the oxygen from future fights. If you are revisiting your plan, start with sound will drafting and an honest review of how your estate will pass.
If you are already in the middle of a dispute, the single most important thing you can do is calendar the deadlines. The three-month objection window, the four-month claim-objection period, the thirty-day enforcement clock, and the two-year non-claim bar are unforgiving. Whether you are an heir who suspects undue influence, a beneficiary frustrated by a silent fiduciary, or a personal representative facing a questionable creditor claim, talk to counsel early. To discuss a specific situation, reach out through our Palm Beach probate office, and learn more about the broader Florida probate process before you act.
The Bottom Line
Disputes among heirs and estate litigation in Florida are governed by a dense, deadline-driven statutory framework that rewards preparation and punishes delay. Will contests, fiduciary claims, and creditor disputes are interlocking, and in Palm Beach estates the creditor-and-claims side is often where the real money is won or lost. The law gives heirs meaningful tools, but those tools have short shelf lives. Knowing which battle to fight, and how little time you have to fight it, is the difference between a recovered inheritance and a missed one.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to contest a will in Florida?
If you were served with formal notice of administration, you generally have three months from the date of service to file an objection challenging the will’s validity, venue, or the court’s jurisdiction under Florida Statute 733.212. That deadline is strict and can be extended only for estoppel based on a misstatement by the personal representative about the time period itself. Acting quickly is essential.
Who has the burden of proof in a Florida will contest?
Under Section 733.107, the will’s proponent must first establish that it was properly executed and attested. The contestant then bears the burden of proving grounds such as undue influence, lack of capacity, or fraud. However, if a substantial beneficiary in a confidential relationship was active in procuring the will, a presumption of undue influence arises and the burden shifts to the person defending the will.
Can an heir object to a creditor's claim against the estate?
Yes. The personal representative or any interested person, including an heir or beneficiary, can file a written objection to a creditor claim. Under Section 733.705, the objection generally must be filed by the later of four months from first publication of the notice to creditors or thirty days from the claim’s timely filing. After a proper objection, the creditor has thirty days to file an independent enforcement action or the claim is barred.
How can a personal representative be removed in Florida?
A beneficiary or interested person can petition the probate court to remove a personal representative under Section 733.504 for grounds such as maladministration, wasting or misapplying estate assets, conflict of interest, or failure to comply with court orders. Courts treat removal seriously, so a documented pattern of misconduct or self-dealing is usually needed rather than a single disagreement.
Do Florida estate disputes have to go to trial?
No. Most Florida estate disputes settle, often through court-ordered mediation and a family settlement agreement approved by the probate judge. When cases do proceed to a contested hearing, they are tried to the judge rather than a jury, which makes documentation, credibility, and strict compliance with statutory deadlines especially important.
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