Real Estate Representative

Raymond E. Miller

*** *. **** ******, *****, FL *3602 * 813-***-**** * ************@*****.***

Education: Stetson University, DeLand, FL; B.A. in Economics (1966)

Stetson University College of Law, Gulfport, FL; J.D. (1969)

Experience:

Attorney, Raymond E. Miller, Attorney at Law, Venice, FL

January 1970 - August 2009

Real Estate: Represented owners, sellers, purchasers, title insurance

companies, lenders, brokers, landlords, tenants, land

developers, condominium developers, condominium associations,

neighborhood associations and litigants in rental disputes

(including evictions), boundary disputes, quiet title suits,

partition actions, water rights disputes, easement

controversies, foreclosures and other real property law suits;

drafted purchase and sale agreements, mortgages, deeds

(including warranty, fee simple, quit claim, life estate,

transfer on death, personal representative, guardianship,

power of attorney, corrective, deeds to and from trustees,

deeds in lieu of foreclosure and other specialty deeds),

leases (including leases with option to purchase),

miscellaneous closing documents, easements, licenses,

right-of-way agreements, options, agreements for deed, land

trusts, plats, condominium documents and boundary agreements;

performed title searches and closings; obtained zoning

changes; cured defective titles; reviewed surveys; established

rights to access; and removed estate tax liens, judgment

liens, mechanics liens and other liens.

Probate: Opened, administered and closed intestate and testate estates,

domiciliary and ancillary estates, multi-million dollar and

small estates; prepared probate court petitions, proposed

court orders and other probate-related documents (including

inventories, accountings, notices of administration and

notices to creditors); conducted formal administrations,

family administrations and summary administrations; admitted

wills to probate without administration; made court approved

distributions of personal property without administration;

admitted foreign wills to probate for the purpose of passing

title to decedent's real estate; prepared last income tax

returns for decedents and fiduciary income tax returns for

estates; prepared state and federal estate tax returns;

participated in IRS estate tax audits; obtained releases of

estate tax liens on real estate owned by decedents; made

partial and early distributions to beneficiaries; represented

personal representatives (including foreign personal

representatives), beneficiaries, creditors and litigants in

will contests and other probate adversarial proceedings;

served as personal representative, curator, special master,

administrator ad litem, guardian ad litem, resident agent,

commissioner to prove wills and expert witness in probate

cases; handled probate appellate work; preformed extraordinary

services such as selling real estate from probate estates;

obtained orders determining beneficiaries; obtained orders

determining homestead; handled proceedings where personal

representative takes possession of protective homestead;

probated lost and destroyed wills; probated wills written in

foreign languages; prepared and filed caveats for creditors

and other interested parties; continued the businesses of

decedents; handled life insurance matters; resolved burial and

funeral matters; performed elective share proceedings;

performed escheat proceedings; surcharged personal

representatives; removed personal representatives;

participated in contested attorney fee and personal

representative fee disputes; handled pretermitted spouse and

pretermitted children issues; modified will provisions to

conform to the best interest of the testator and estate; and

identified post mortem estate planning opportunities and

implemented them through disclaimers and other means.

Guardianships: Opened, administered and terminated plenary guardianships,

limited guardianships, emergency temporary guardianships,

voluntary guardianships, guardianships for minors and guardian

advocate proceedings; represented alleged incapacitated

persons, minors, wards, persons with developmental

disabilities and their family members; represented

professional and non-professional guardians, surrogate

guardians and foreign guardians of wards owning real estate in

Florida; prepared guardianship court filings (including

opening documents, inventories, plans, reports and

accountings, including simplified accountings): settled claims

of minors; continued businesses of wards; removed guardians;

sold real estate of wards; made gifts of wards property for

tax and other planning purposes; drafted disclaimers for

wards; created trusts for wards for tax or Medicaid planning

purposes; made pre-death funeral arrangements for wards;

obtained reverse mortgages for wards; restored rights of

wards; created standby guardianships for wards; implemented

alternatives to guardianships; prepared pre-need guardian

designations for adults and minors; handled guardian and

attorney fee matters; purchased homes for wards; and

participated in restoration proceedings for wards.

Wills: Drafted and attended to execution of wills (including

self-proofed wills and wills containing testamentary trusts);

drafted and attended to execution of separate writings

authorized in will to devise certain items of personal

property; drafted and attended to execution of agreements to

make wills; drafted and attended to the execution of codicils

to wills; revoked wills and republished wills; and represented

litigants in will contests (including appellate proceedings).

Trusts: Drafted and attended to the execution of trusts (including

testamentary and living trusts, revocable and irrevocable

trusts, spendthrift and discretionary trusts, special needs

trusts and other Medicaid planning trusts, estate planning

trusts, including elective share trusts); represented

beneficiaries of trusts; represented trustees in the

administration of trusts, prepared notices of trusts, trust

accountings, trust waivers, initial qualifying documents

enabling trustees to act, beneficiary agreements, trust

certifications and other trust related documents; obtained

judicial and non-judicial modifications of trusts; established

valuation of trust assets, considering decreases for blockage,

minority interests, lack of marketability and environmental

liability; represented litigants in trust litigation

(including matters of contested claims, disagreements over

effect of language used in trusts, determining trust

beneficiaries, apportioning estate taxes among beneficiaries,

trustee fees and attorneys' fees and other adversarial

matters); and terminated uneconomical trusts.

Estate Planning: Worked with clients on individual and specialized estate

planning needs and prepared the following type of documents to

implement the same: durable power of attorney, advanced

healthcare directives (living will), designation of health

care surrogate, HIPAA release forms, pre-need guardian

designations for adults and minors, wills and trusts

(containing estate tax beneficial language when appropriate),

beneficiary designations for retirement accounts, life

insurance policies, pensions and other transfer on death types

of assets or accounts, funeral directions (including

consideration of pre-arrangements and pre-payment), letters of

intent to executor, trustee, and beneficiaries, pre-nuptial

and other marriage-type agreements.

Memberships: Lifetime Member and past President of The Kiwanis Club of

Venice

Former Member of The Florida Bar

Former Member of the Sarasota County Bar

Former Member of Attorneys' Title Insurance Company (The Fund)

References: Robert L. Moore (former professional colleague): 941-***-****

Kerry Mack (former professional colleague): 941-***-****

Jeffrey Boone (former professional colleague): 941-***-****

Mark Mazzeo (former professional colleague): 941-***-****

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