Summary administration is governed by Chapter 735 of the Florida statutes, and it is entitled to small estates. This may be a misnomer because it is not just small estates that can qualify for summary administration. According to theBalance, other large estates may qualify for summary administration.
Essentially, summary administration is an abbreviated probate proceeding that is appropriate if the probate assets do not exceed $75,000, which would be a small estate. It is also appropriate if the deceased has been dead for more than two years. So, if the deceased has been dead for more than two years, then it does not matter if their assets exceed $75,000. They could have a multimillion-dollar estate and still qualify for summary administration or abbreviated administration simply because the deceased had passed away two years or more.
According to the Florida Legislature, the reason for this is because the creditor period under Florida law would have lapsed after two years. So all the creditors’ claims would have wrapped, and they would not have to address those claims because those would no longer be valid under the law.
So, a summary administration would be appropriate and easier than having to go through the entire formal administration process with notice to creditors, because that would be a moot issue and the time frame for which creditors were supposed to make a claim after death would have passed. If you believe that you have been designated a personal representative, there is some title work or some other reason why you think your probate is not proceeding properly, you may need to consider summary administration rather than a former administration.