This is the second in my series of estate planning "don'ts" - lessons that I have learned during my 15 years of practice as an estate planning attorney. Next up on the list, Don't write your own will.
Estate planning is really too complicated to try to do it yourself. The laws that govern things like the legal formalities required to make a will, who can serve as a fiduciary (Personal Representative, successor Trustee, etc.), and who can be cut out as your beneficiary vary from state to state and can cause all sorts of problems for do-it-yourselfers. And relying on generic forms found in a book or online can't give you personal advice and counseling and in most cases will lead to unintended results. Only an estate planning attorney will be able to walk you through all of your estate planning options and then make a plan for you and your family that will work as you expect because it will be based on your own unique situation, not on some generic, "one size fits all" computer program.
- What is a Last Will and Testament?
- What Happens Without a Will?
- Should You Write Your Own Will?
- How Do You Make Changes to Your Last Will and Testament?
- Will Your Will Work in All 50 States?
- Estate Planning Do's
- Estate Planning Don'ts
Discuss do-it-yourself wills in the Wills & Estate Planning Forum:
How true! We are currently administering an estate where the decedent wrote his own codicil. Because it was not done properly, it is costing more to fix his mistakes than it would have been if he just came to us for the codicil in the first place. Although retaining an attorney for estate planning may cost more than going online or typing something up yourself, it actually saves you money in the long run.