Attorney Wayne Williamson has been practicing law in Northwest Florida for almost 20 years not only helping clients get out of legal trouble, but avoiding it as well. “In the legal profession,” says Williamson, “the old adage, ‘If you only knew what you didn’t know,’ comes up almost every day. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad to see folks come into court representing themselves only to leave having lost their rights.” Wayne’s expertise is in civil litigation but also includes real estate, probate and estate planning. He has become one of Northwest Florida’s “go to” lawyers when out of state concerns need representation. His long term experience in our courtrooms is a valuable commodity.
“I’ve told many clients that you can be right on the substance but lose on procedure,” says Williamson. “Civil court, for the most part, is there to protect people’s rights. But if the proper procedures are not used at the right time and in the right order, people can have the law on their side but still lose their rights. The satisfaction I get is giving my clients peace of mind as we navigate through an area most people know nothing about. I just recently helped an elderly woman and her children set up an estate plan. Her reason for hiring me was that she didn’t want her children to go through what she went through when her husband passed away. That’s the best part of my job.”
On when to start an estate plan Wayne says, “I think in life, we are never promised tomorrow so having an estate plan or trust is important to protect those that we may leave behind. It is especially troublesome for a blended family where the husband and wife have kids from prior marriages. The bottom line is that if the person does not have an estate plan, the State of Florida has made one for them. The State of Florida’s plan mostly likely will not pass the estate to the heirs the same way a person would do it in a will or trust. It is always better to make your own plan.”
