Florida Probate Court - Hillsborough County Probate Court
Hillsborough County is located on the west coast of Florida. Its county seat is Tampa. In 2007, the Hillsborough County Planning Commission conducted a population estimate that put this county's population at approximately 1,2000,000.
Probate is the legal process of settling a deceased person's estate which includes paying all of the debts and distributing the assets to the beneficiaries listed in the decedent's will or , if there is no will, distributing the assets to the correct people as provided by the Florida law. In the state of Florida, an estate must be probated in the county in which the decedent died or owned real property. The Florida probate code which is set forth in detail in the Florida Statutes sets forth all rules and regulations relating to wills, probate, etc. The process of probate is a complicated procedure and can be a pitfall for someone who is uneducated and inexperienced in this process. For this reason, except for the simplest and smallest of estates, a qualified Florida Probate Attorney is needed to guide you.
If you are named as a Personal Representative in a person's will or want to be appointed the Personal Representative of a decedent who died without a will, you would be wise to seek legal counsel first. If you are a child who lives out of state, you usually do not have to travel to the state of Florida to be appointed a Personal Representative of your parent's estate, but you will need a Florida attorney to represent you. It is not required that the attorney be from Hillsborough County if the probate is occurring there; any lawyer in the State of Florida can represent you. It is important to note that you may choose whichever attorney you feel comfortable with and are not required to use the attorney that prepared a will or even an attorney that is set forth as your attorney in the will. This is your own choice.
The circuit court in Hillsborough County is in charge of probate. Pat Frank is the Clerk of the Circuit Court. She is a public official that was elected by the citizens of Hillsborough County and is charged with filing, storing and monitoring all of the pending probate case files. The official website where you can obtain a great deal of information is http://www.hillsclerk.com/publicweb/home.aspx. The clerk of the court has offices in downtown Tampa, Brandon, Southshore and Plant City. The clerk's office is dedicated to the public and wants to provide you with the information that you need; however, it is important to note that while probate clerks may have a great deal of experience dealing with probate and related issues that they are not attorneys and you must contact a Florida probate attorney which is also known as an elder lawyer to assist you in estate planning and probate issues.
Contact information for the clerk is:
CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT
GEORGE E. EDGECOMB COURTHOUSE
800 TWIGGS STREET
TAMPA, FLORIDA 33602
Their hours of operation are 8:00a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
As indicated above, there are courthouses in various locations so select the one most convenient to you. Maps and directions are available on their website as are their holiday schedule. The main phone number is 813-276-8100. Call 1-800-PROBATE ext 5 to learn more about the Hillsborough County Probate Court.
Probate Articles for Florida Cities
Probate Articles for Florida Counties
Looking For A Probate Lawyer In Your State?
