Florida Statutes 717.1243 – Small estate accounts
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Terms Used In Florida Statutes 717.1243
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Aggregate: means the amounts reported for owners of unclaimed property of less than $10 or where there is no name for the individual or entity listed on the holder's records, regardless of the amount to be reported. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Claimant: means the person on whose behalf a claim is filed. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Department: means the Department of Financial Services. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
- Owner: means a person, or the person's legal representative, entitled to receive or having a legal or equitable interest in or claim against property subject to this chapter; a depositor in the case of a deposit; a beneficiary in the case of a trust or a deposit in trust; or a payee in the case of a negotiable instrument or other intangible property. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Person: means an individual; estate; business association; corporation; firm; association; joint adventure; partnership; government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; or any other legal or commercial entity. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Probate: Proving a will
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, insular possession, and any other area subject to the legislative authority of the United States. See Florida Statutes 717.101
- Testate: To die leaving a will.
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(1) A claim for unclaimed property made by a beneficiary, as defined in s. 731.201, of a deceased owner need not be accompanied by an order of a probate court if the claimant files with the department an affidavit, signed by all beneficiaries, stating that all the beneficiaries have amicably agreed among themselves upon a division of the estate and that all funeral expenses, expenses of the last illness, and any other lawful claims have been paid, and any additional information reasonably necessary to make a determination of entitlement. If the owner died testate, the claim shall be accompanied by a copy of the will.
(2) Each person receiving property under this section shall be personally liable for all lawful claims against the estate of the owner, but only to the extent of the value of the property received by such person under this section, exclusive of the property exempt from claims of creditors under the constitution and laws of this state.
(3) Any heir or devisee of the owner, who was lawfully entitled to share in the property but did not receive his or her share of the property, may enforce his or her rights in appropriate proceedings against those who received the property and shall be awarded taxable costs as in chancery actions, including attorney’s fees.
(4) This section applies only if all of the unclaimed property held by the department on behalf of the owner has an aggregate value of $20,000 or less and no probate proceeding is pending.
(5) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as precluding the use of live testimony in order to establish entitlement.