Experts and Columnists

Written by:  Beverly Gagliardi,   ACP, MBA, MSN, CN, Florida Supreme Court Family Law Mediator  

DO I NEED A LAWYER TO FILE A PROBATE ACTION WITH OR WITHOUT A LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT?

Probate actions are either in the form of Summary Administration or Formal Administration.  It is a complicated area to proceed pro se or self-representation.  There are times when a non-lawyer can assist you.

The preparation is very detailed and specific requiring some advanced training by the non-lawyer.  And finally, yes you can file a probate action with or without will after the passing of a loved one.

Thank you for reading this article.  Please go to www.afloridaparalegal.com to learn more about other services you may need. 

Good Luck with your legal matter.   Bev

NOTE:   This article is intended to help you help yourself and save money in the process. Beverly Gagliardi is the President of Wisdom Consulting, Inc. Accent on Paralegal and Non-lawyers Services with offices located in Central Florida (Orlando, Lake Mary and Sanford Florida).  She may be contacted at 407/324-5885 or bev@afloridaparalegal.com  or mediatorbev@gmail.com.  Her next article will be "DO I NEED A LAWYER TO FILE A NAME CHANGE ACTION?

DO I NEED A LAWYER TO FILE TO MODIFY CHILD SUPPORT IN FLORIDA?

That is a very good question especially in these times of economic crisis. Thanks to the Florida Supreme Court the answer is quite simply NO. You may have your MODIFICATION documents prepared by a non-lawyer, thus you would be representing yourself as a pro se litigant.

Sometimes you may hear people refer to non-lawyers as "paralegals".

The terms are not interchangeable because of the way The Florida Bar defines a paralegal.  However, most people refer to a legal helper for members of the public as a paralegal instead of a "non-lawyer".

Now, back to your question. Lawyers are expensive and can only represent one party.  You do not need to hire a lawyer for MODIFICATION OF CHILD SUPPORT.  An alternative to hiring an attorney is hiring a "non-lawyer."  Sometimes the modification can also be prepared so that both of you sign eliminating the need to serve the other party.

You will need to tell your non-lawyer what was the significant change in circumstances to support your request and why it would be in the best interest of the child(ren).   Typically, your non-lawyer professional will be able to assist you with these routine documents for a fraction of the cost.  So just call your local non-lawyer for routine modification of child support request in the State of Florida.

He/she may also be a Certified Paralegal who is certified by a national organization.  Just ask for credential verification.

Thank you for reading this article.  Please go to www.afloridaparalegal.com to learn more about other services you may need.

Good Luck with your legal matter.   Bev

NOTE:   This article is intended to help you help yourself and save money in the process. Beverly Gagliardi is the President of Wisdom Consulting, Inc. Accent on Paralegal and Non-lawyers Services with offices located in Central Florida (Orlando, Lake Mary and Sanford Florida).  She may be contacted at 407/324-5885 or bev@afloridaparalegal or mediatorbev@gmail.com. Her next article will be "DO I NEED A LAWYER TO FILE A PROBATE ACTION WITH OR WITHOUT A LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT?

Written by:  Beverly Gagliardi,   ACP, MBA, MSN, CN, Florida Supreme

Court Family Law Mediator

DO I NEED A LAWYER TO FILE FOR BANKRUPTCY?

          That is a very good question.  Just like divorce, filing for bankruptcy does NOT require hiring a lawyer and paying their high fees.  You can represent yourself as a pro se litigant.

   According to the United States Bankruptcy Code a non-lawyer document preparer may  assist you in preparing  the documents.  Each non-lawyer professional, sometimes referred to as a "paralegal" may prepare the documents and explain the procedures without giving any legal advice.

 He or she will assist you as a pro se (self-represented) litigant.

The numbers of pages generally prepared are in a range of 42-50 pages according to your individualized case.  The cost of utilizing the professional services of a non-lawyer, of course, is significantly less than an attorney (lawyer) fee.  Keep in mind that your non-lawyer is required to disclose the fee charged to the Bankruptcy Court.

       If you are seeking bankruptcy, a pre-filing and post-filing course is required.  Debthelpers.com has successfully assisted  my customers with ease either on the phone or via the internet in English and Spanish.  My customers have been very satisfied and found the experience very helpful.  Also, the certificates are delivered quickly to my clients and me making the process stress-free.  If you are interested, Florida based company, Debthelper.com can be contacted via the internet at Debthelper.com or by calling 800-920-0226.

               Therefore, think about your significantly low cost option for preparing your bankruptcy documents, call your local non-lawyer ("paralegal") or feel free to contact me at bev@afloridaparalegal.com  The documents are Federal documents so they are the same for each state.  Keep in mind that each court may have some other unique required submissions, so please check with your non-lawyer or court before filing.

Thank you for reading this article.  Please go to www.afloridaparalegal.com to learn more about other services you may need.

Good Luck with your legal matter.   Bev

NOTE:   This article is intended to help you help yourself and save money in the process. Beverly Gagliardi is the President of Wisdom Consulting, Inc. Accent on Paralegal and Non-lawyers Services with offices located in Central Florida (Orlando, Lake Mary and Sanford Florida). She may be contacted at 407/324-5885 or bev@afloridaparalegal.com or mediatorbev@gmail.com.  Her next article will be "DO I NEED A LAWYER TO MODIFY CHILD SUPPORT?"