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Petitioner drafted Mrs. Putman's will, which left her entire
estate to her three daughters in equal shares. The will also
named petitioner sole personal representative of Mrs. Putman's
estate.
On April 20, 1987, Mrs. Putman died in a house fire in
Winter Haven, Florida. The fair market value of all assets owned
by Mrs. Putman at the time of her death was approximately
$518,000.
On April 30, 1987, petitioner was appointed by the Circuit
Court of Polk County to serve as the personal representative of
her estate. On May 1, 1987, petitioner opened an estate trust
account at the Barnett Bank of Polk County in Winter Haven,
Florida, for Mrs. Putman's estate. Petitioner deposited into
this account the proceeds from the sale of estate assets.
Petitioner was the sole authorized signatory on the estate trust
account.
Jesse Putman, Mrs. Putman's husband, was not a named
beneficiary of the will, and he relinquished his statutory
elective share in his wife's estate. However, he was entitled to
receive and retain life insurance and homeowner's insurance
proceeds in the amount of $170,900, less $51,500 to be paid to
the daughters. Petitioner advised Mr. Putman that marshaling all
assets into a "gross" cash estate would be in the best interest
of the beneficiaries and would simplify computation of the estate
taxes due the Internal Revenue Service. Mr. Putman agreed and
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