James William Martin

James W. Martin is an experienced real estate, estate planning, and business lawyer in private practice in St. Petersburg, Pinellas County, Florida. He is board certified in real estate law by the Florida Bar and has achieved the highest lawyer ratings on Super Lawyers, Avvo, and Martindale. He has written law books and articles published in national and Florida legal publications, spoken at bar seminars, and taught as an adjunct law professor at Stetson University College of Law.

Real Estate Law

Estate Planning

Trusts, Wills

Probate

Probate Administration

Business Law

Business Contracts, Business Dissolution, Business Formation

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Florida

11th Circuit

U.S. Supreme Court

US District Court Middle District Florida

Attorney

James W. Martin, P.A.

1979 - Current

Adjunct Professor of Law

Stetson University College of Law

2009 - 2022

Contract Drafting, Law Practice Management, Legal Drafting

Partner

Law Offices of Brickley & Martin

1974 - 1979

Stetson University College of Law

J.D.

Stetson University

B.S. | Mathematics

University System of Georgia - Georgia Institute of Technology

10.0

Avvo

2012

SuperLawyers

Thomson Reuters

AV Preeminent

Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory

Stetson Law Hall of Fame

Stetson University College of Law

American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education

Editorial Board, ALI-CLE The Practical Lawyer (former)

Current

City of St. Petersburg

Councilman for District 4 (former)

Current

The Florida Bar Probate Rules Committee

Committee Member (former)

Current

Drafting a Clear As-Is Agreement

St. Petersburg Bar Association Real Property Section

Drafting the Contract or Settlement Agreement That Stays Out of Court

The Brief, ABA Tort, Trial & Insurance Practice Section

Drafting the Settlement Agreement That Stays Out of Court

Tort, Trial & Insurance Practice Section, American Bar Association Annual Convention, Chicago

Fifty Tips for Writing the 21st Century Contract That Stays Out of Court

ALI-ABA The Practical Real Estate Lawyer, The Florida Bar Journal, ALI-ABA’s Practice Checklist Manual for Drafting Leases IV, ALI-ABA’s Real World Document Drafting: Form, Style and Substance, and Thomson West’s Foundations of Legal Research & Writing

Fifty Tips for Writing the Contract That Stays Out of Court

ALI-ABA The Practical Real Estate Lawyer

The Basics of Contract Drafting, Basic Transactional Law, Tampa

The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division

Board Certified in Real Estate Law

The Florida Bar

2015

Q. I'm starting a business as a sole proprietor in Florida do I need a DBA to use my initial and last name?

February 11, 2022

A: See F.S. 865.09 here: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0800-0899/0865/Sections/0865.09.html

Q. If a seller fsbo had no agent and the buyer is a broker does the seller owe him a commission for buying their house?

February 10, 2022

A: See Florida Statutes Section 475.278 here regarding broker disclosure requirements: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0400-0499/0475/Sections/0475.278.html

Q. Will a Quit Claim deed from mother to son avoid probate upon her death?

February 10, 2022

A: It might remove the conveyed real estate from what would pass by probate at her death, but it might incur federal gift tax during her lifetime, and it might result in loss of Florida homestead benefits such as the Save Our Homes Cap and exemption from claims of creditors. There are usually better estate planning tools than conveying real estate to family members prior to death, especially if the real estate is still being used.