Florida RUFADAA Law
Verified against the official Fla. Stat. ch. 740 text:
How Chapter 740 lets personal representatives, agents, trustees, and guardians reach a Florida resident's online accounts, and what each must hand the custodian.
Quick answer
Florida governs fiduciary access to digital assets through Chapter 740 of the Florida Statutes. A personal representative appointed by letters of administration, an order of summary administration, or another court order can obtain a deceased user's account catalogue, and can obtain the content of emails and messages only if the user consented. Under §740.003, a direction the user made in a provider's online tool overrides a contrary will, trust, or power of attorney. Custodians have 60 days to comply after receiving the required documents (§740.06).
Florida digital asset law at a glance
- Statute
- Florida Statutes Chapter 740 (§§740.001–740.11)
- Applies to
- Wills, trusts, and powers of attorney executed before, on, or after July 1, 2016, for users who reside or resided in Florida (§740.08)
- Fiduciaries covered
- Personal representatives, guardians of the property, agents under ch. 709 powers of attorney, trustees (§740.002)
- Online-tool priority
- §740.003
- Court
- A Florida circuit court (§740.002)
- Custodian deadline
- 60 days after receiving the required information (§740.06)
- Small-estate route
- Order of summary administration under ch. 735 accepted (§740.006)
- Florida-only rule
- Nothing in ch. 740 excuses the duty to deposit a will under §732.901 (§740.11)
What makes Florida’s law different
Florida ties every role to its own probate chapters
Chapter 740 defines “court” as a Florida circuit court, a personal representative as the fiduciary appointed by the court under letters of administration, a guardian as a guardian of the property of a minor or incapacitated person, and a power of attorney as a record granting authority under chapter 709. A request is analysed through those Florida definitions rather than generic ones.
Summary administration and curators are recognised
For the content of a deceased user's communications, §740.006 accepts a certified copy of letters of administration, an order authorizing a curator or administrator ad litem, an order of summary administration issued under chapter 735, or another court order. Smaller Florida estates that never open a full administration can therefore still make a statutory request.
Guardians need a chapter 744 hearing first
Under §740.04, the court may grant a guardian access to a ward's digital assets only after an opportunity for a hearing under chapter 744. Even then, the guardian receives the catalogue and non-content assets, not message content. A guardian with general authority over the ward's property may also ask the custodian to suspend or terminate the ward's account for good cause, with a certified court order.
Chapter 740 does not touch the will-deposit duty
Section 740.11 is a Florida addition: no act taken under Chapter 740 affects anyone's obligation to deposit a decedent's original will with the clerk under §732.901. Handling a decedent's online accounts never substitutes for that step.
What a Florida personal representative must give the custodian
After a death, Fla. Stat. ch. 740 separates two requests: the content of the user’s emails and messages, and everything else, including a catalogue of who the user corresponded with and when. Each has its own document list.
To obtain message content (§740.006)
- A written request for disclosure, in physical or electronic form
- A certified copy of the death certificate
- A certified copy of letters of administration, an order authorizing a curator or administrator ad litem, an order of summary administration under chapter 735, or another court order
- Unless the user gave direction through an online tool, a copy of the will, trust, power of attorney, or other record showing the user consented to disclosure of content
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, or a court finding on the account, consent, and federal-law compliance
To obtain the catalogue and other digital assets (§740.007)
- A written request, a certified death certificate, and the same proof of appointment
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, an affidavit that disclosure is reasonably necessary for administration, or a court finding
- No proof of the user's consent is needed for the catalogue unless the user prohibited disclosure or the court directs otherwise
Agents, trustees, and guardians in Florida
Agent under a power of attorney (§§740.008–740.009)
To obtain message content, the power of attorney must expressly grant authority over the content of the principal's electronic communications, and the agent must certify under penalty of perjury that it remains in effect. For the catalogue and other assets, specific authority over digital assets or general authority to act for the principal is enough.
Trustee (§§740.01–740.03)
A trustee that is the original account holder gets everything, including content. A trustee that is not the original user needs the trust instrument or a certification of trust under §736.1017 showing consent to disclosure of content, plus a sworn certification that the trust exists and the trustee is currently acting.
Guardian (§740.04)
Access to the catalogue and non-content assets only, after an opportunity for a chapter 744 hearing, on a certified copy of letters of plenary guardianship or a court order giving authority over digital assets.
Can an online account setting override a Florida will?
Yes, within limits. Fla. Stat. §740.003 lets a user direct a custodian, through the custodian’s own online tool, to disclose or withhold some or all digital assets. If the tool lets the user change or delete that direction at any time, it overrides a contrary instruction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record. Where the user made no such direction, the estate documents control, and either kind of direction overrides a conflicting terms-of-service clause.
How Fla. Stat. ch. 740 is organized
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| §740.001 | Short title |
| §740.002 | Definitions |
| §740.003 | User direction for disclosure of digital assets |
| §740.004 | Terms-of-service agreement preserved |
| §740.005 | Procedure for disclosing digital assets |
| §740.006 | Content of electronic communications of deceased user |
| §740.007 | Other digital assets of deceased user |
| §740.008 | Content of electronic communications of principal |
| §740.009 | Other digital assets of principal |
| §740.01 | Digital assets held in trust when trustee is the original user |
| §740.02 | Content held in trust when trustee is not the original user |
| §740.03 | Other digital assets held in trust when trustee is not the original user |
| §740.04 | Disclosure of digital assets to guardian of ward |
| §740.05 | Fiduciary duty and authority |
| §740.06 | Custodian compliance and immunity |
| §740.07 | Relation to Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act |
| §740.08 | Applicability |
| §740.09 | Severability |
| §740.11 | Relation to wills |
Florida RUFADAA questions
Chapter 740 of the Florida Statutes, the Florida Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act. It applies when the account holder lived in Florida, and to wills, trusts, and powers of attorney executed before, on, or after July 1, 2016.
Only if the decedent consented, either through the provider's online tool or in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record, or a court directs disclosure. Without consent, §740.007 still allows a catalogue showing who the user corresponded with and when, but not the content.
Yes. Section 740.006 expressly accepts a certified order of summary administration issued under chapter 735, in addition to letters of administration, curator orders, and other court orders.
Sixty days after receiving the information Chapter 740 requires. If it does not comply, the fiduciary may ask the court for an order directing compliance, which must find that compliance does not violate 18 U.S.C. §2702 (§740.06).
A guardian with general authority over the ward's property may ask the custodian to suspend or terminate the account for good cause, accompanied by a certified court order (§740.04).
It can. Under §740.003, a direction given through a custodian's online tool that can be changed or deleted at any time overrides a contrary direction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record.
Concepts that apply in every state
Some ideas work the same way under every RUFADAA-style statute: what counts as a digital asset, why the content of private messages is treated differently from a catalogue, what a custodian may hand over, and what these laws do not do (they never guarantee passwords). They are explained once in the RUFADAA overview.
Primary source
Chapter 740 of the Florida Statutes, the Florida Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act
Online-tool provision: Fla. Stat. §740.003.
Where Vesperly fits
Fla. Stat. ch. 740 decides who may ask a custodian for what. Vesperly handles the practical side: keeping your records encrypted, verifying your executor and the death certificate, and releasing what you chose once those conditions are met. It does not replace the statute, your estate plan, or legal advice.
Other state guides
Educational information only. Not legal advice. Laws, provider procedures, federal requirements, and individual circumstances can change the result in a specific matter. Consult qualified counsel for legal advice.