The Personal Representative Who Stopped Returning Calls: A $90,000 Cautionary Tale from Casselberry

"He said he had it covered"

Beverly grew up in Casselberry. She raised three children in the same brick house off Howell Branch, and when her husband passed in 2019, she stayed put. She was a careful, steady person. She had a Florida last will and testament from 2003, named her oldest son James as personal representative, and divided her estate equally among her three children. There was no trust, no surprises, and no real arguments in the family.

When Beverly died in early 2024, James told his two younger sisters not to worry. He had it covered. He would talk to a lawyer, file the will, sell the house, and split everything three ways.

The two daughters, Karen in Lake Mary and Lisa in Tampa, were grateful. They were both juggling jobs, kids, and grief. They were happy to let their brother lead.

That gratitude lasted about four months. Then the calls slowed down. Then the texts went unread. Then James moved out of his apartment, and the new phone number nobody had circulated quietly through the family. Fourteen months after their mother's funeral, Karen and Lisa walked into our office with a folder of unanswered emails and a list of questions they did not know how to ask.

What we eventually pieced together was the kind of story that gives Florida probate its bad reputation. James had been appointed personal representative. He had hired an attorney, qualified as personal representative, opened the estate bank account, and then begun making decisions on his own. He had sold the house at a price that, in our review, was at least $40,000 below market. He had paid himself a "personal representative fee" that was four times what F.S. 733.617 actually allows. He had paid two unverified "creditor claims" to friends. He had distributed almost nothing to his sisters.

By the time Karen and Lisa came in, the estate had been open for fourteen months, the house was gone, and roughly $90,000 of value had quietly evaporated.

Why this happens, even in nice families

We see versions of this case three or four times a year. The headlines are always different. The pattern is almost always the same.

The personal representative is a family member. The family is not particularly rich. There is no formal accounting because nobody asked for one early. The personal representative starts out well-meaning and then gets in over their head, embarrassed, or tempted, and the silence builds. By the time the other beneficiaries notice, money has moved.

A few things make Florida specifically vulnerable to this. Florida lets the personal representative serve without bond if the will waives bond, which most wills do. Florida lets the personal representative open an estate bank account with surprisingly little oversight, especially at smaller banks. And Florida probate paperwork is not naturally readable by a layperson, so beneficiaries often do not realize they have a right to demand a written accounting until well after the trouble has started.

Add a thin family relationship, a real estate market that lets a private sale slip past a beneficiary, and a personal representative with money problems, and you have the ingredients for exactly what happened to Beverly's family.

What the law actually requires

A personal representative in Florida is a fiduciary. That means James was legally required to act in the best interests of the estate and the beneficiaries, not himself. Florida statute spells this out in F.S. 733.602 and F.S. 736.0801, and the duties are not subtle.

He had to keep estate property separate from his own under F.S. 733.609. He could not self-deal under F.S. 733.610. He had to provide accountings to the beneficiaries under F.S. 733.504 and F.S. 736.08135 if requested. His compensation was capped by the schedule in F.S. 733.617, which for an estate of that size would have been a fraction of what he paid himself. And he had to act with the care of a prudent person under F.S. 733.602.

He was also subject to removal under F.S. 733.504 for failing to perform any duty, mismanaging the estate, or refusing to obey a court order. Removal is exactly what we filed for, and exactly what the court ordered.

What the daughters were able to recover

The good news is that Florida law gives beneficiaries real teeth in this situation, and not just in theory.

We filed a petition to compel an accounting. The court ordered James to produce one within 30 days. He produced a partial one, late, with several inconsistencies. We then filed a petition for surcharge and removal. The court appointed a successor personal representative. Bank records were subpoenaed. A licensed appraiser confirmed the house had been sold below market.

The estate ultimately recovered roughly $52,000 from James, partly through a surcharge order, partly through a settlement that let him avoid further litigation, and partly through forfeiture of the inflated fees he had paid himself. Karen and Lisa received their proper shares, plus interest, and the estate paid most of the attorney's fees out of the recovered funds, as Florida law allows in a successful surcharge case.

It was not the full $90,000. Some of the lost value, particularly the house sale, could not be unwound. But it was enough to feel like justice had reached the room, even if it took two years longer than it should have.

The harder part was the family. Karen and Lisa have not spoken to James since the surcharge order. He moved to Georgia. The brick house off Howell Branch belongs to a family neither of them knows.

What we would have changed about this case

Three things, none of them complicated.

First, Beverly's will named James and only James. There was no co-personal representative and no requirement that he provide regular accountings to his sisters. A simple co-personal representative arrangement, or a clause requiring annual informal accountings to the beneficiaries, would have created friction at exactly the moment friction is useful.

Second, Karen and Lisa did not know what to ask for, and they did not know that asking quickly mattered. Florida beneficiaries have a right to a copy of the will, the petition for administration, the inventory under F.S. 733.604, the notice to creditors, and a final accounting at minimum. Asking in writing, in the first 60 days, would have surfaced the problems much earlier.

Third, the estate did not have a trust. A revocable trust with a successor trustee, an annual accounting requirement, and a clear instruction to liquidate the home through a licensed broker would have removed most of the discretion James abused. Probate is public, but it is not as private as a well-drafted trust, and the trust would have moved this entire case into a much more controlled lane.

The takeaway for Orlando families

Picking a personal representative is a load-bearing decision in your estate plan. It is also one of the most rushed and least examined parts of most wills. The right choice is usually the most patient, communicative, and conflict-tolerant person in your life, not the most senior, the closest, or the one with the loudest opinions.

If you have already lost a parent and you suspect your sibling is not handling things well, do not wait until the silence becomes a habit. Florida law gives you tools. You will need them faster than you think.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a personal representative really sell a house without telling the beneficiaries?

In some cases, yes. Under F.S. 733.613, a personal representative with adequate authority in the will can sell estate property without prior court approval. This is exactly why the choice of personal representative, and clear sale-price standards in the will, matter so much.

How quickly can I find out what is happening in my parent's probate?

Probate filings in Florida are public, and most counties have free online access. You can usually pull the petition for administration, the will, and the order appointing the personal representative within a day or two of filing. Orange, Seminole, Lake, Brevard, and Osceola counties all post documents online for free.

What if my sibling is the personal representative and refuses to give me information?

You can demand a written accounting under F.S. 733.504. If the personal representative refuses or stalls, you can petition the court to compel one and to remove them for failing to perform their duties. Florida courts take these petitions seriously.

Will the estate pay for my lawyer if I have to sue my sibling?

Sometimes, yes. Florida courts can order the estate to pay reasonable beneficiary attorney's fees in a successful surcharge or removal action under F.S. 733.106 and F.S. 736.1004 in trust cases. The fees come out of the personal representative's share before they come out of the estate.

How do I avoid this happening to my own children?

Pick the right personal representative, name a co-fiduciary or successor for accountability, build accounting requirements into the document, and consider a revocable trust if you want a tighter and more private process. We talk about this at every estate planning meeting.

Call Our Office

If you are a beneficiary who has not heard from a Florida personal representative in months, or you are trying to head off a problem like Beverly's by getting your own plan in better shape, this is exactly the kind of work we do every week. Call our office at (407) 843-0430 or visit orlandoprobatelawyer.com to schedule a confidential review. We have been helping Orlando families since 1928, and we will tell you what is normal, what is not, and what to do about it.