If you and your partner have built a life together in Palm Beach without marrying, the law sees you as legal strangers. That can come as a shock during a medical crisis or after a loss. The good news is that a clear estate plan can give each of you nearly all the protections marriage would provide, as long as you put it in writing.
Why Florida Treats Unmarried Partners Differently
Florida does not recognize common-law marriage, no matter how many years you have shared a home. Under the state’s intestacy rules in the Florida Probate Code, an unmarried partner inherits nothing automatically. Without planning, your assets would pass to your relatives, and your partner could be left with no claim to the home or savings you built together. Marriage also brings the elective share (Sections 732.2065 and following), which protects a surviving spouse. Unmarried partners get none of that, so your documents have to do the work instead.
Wills and Trusts That Name Each Other
The foundation is a valid Florida will for each partner, signed before two witnesses per Section 732.502, naming the other as a beneficiary. Many Palm Beach couples go further with a revocable living trust under Chapter 736. A trust keeps your wishes private, avoids probate, and makes it harder for relatives to contest your decision to provide for your partner. You can also use the trust to spell out who receives sentimental items or family property.
The Florida Homestead Question
If you own a Palm Beach home together, Florida’s homestead protections under Article X, Section 4 of the state constitution deserve careful attention. Homestead has special rules about how a primary residence can pass at death, and those rules can complicate plans for unmarried owners. How you hold title, whether as joint tenants with right of survivorship or another form, makes a real difference in whether the home passes smoothly to the survivor. This is an area where professional guidance pays off.
Powers of Attorney and Health Care Documents
Without legal documents, your partner has no authority to make medical or financial decisions for you, and a relative or the court could step in instead. Protect each other with:
- A durable power of attorney (Chapter 709) so your partner can manage finances if you are incapacitated.
- A health care surrogate designation so your partner can make medical decisions.
- A living will stating your wishes about end-of-life care.
- A HIPAA authorization so your partner can even receive information from your doctors.
Beneficiary Designations and Joint Accounts
Retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death bank accounts pass directly to whoever you name, outside of probate and outside your will. For unmarried couples these forms are powerful tools. Name your partner deliberately and review the designations whenever your circumstances change.
Tax Comfort and a Caution
Florida charges no state estate or inheritance tax, so a transfer to your partner will not trigger a state death tax. Be aware, though, that unmarried partners do not get the unlimited marital deduction for federal estate tax that married couples enjoy, so larger estates may need additional planning.
Consult a Florida Attorney
Because Florida gives unmarried partners no automatic standing, your documents are everything. A licensed Florida estate planning attorney who works with Palm Beach couples can make sure your wills, trust, homestead title, and powers of attorney all fit together to protect the person you have chosen to share your life with.
For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of powers of attorney in Florida. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles New York elder law.