Reason #6 to Talk to an Estate Planning Attorney: The Internet Doesn’t Have a Law Degree

Reason #6 to Talk to an Estate Planning Attorney: The Internet Doesn’t Have a Law Degree

The Internet doesn’t have a fiduciary duty to its readers either.

I recently saw an ad for a well-known advice-giver that appeared to be a simple comparison of Wills and Living Trusts that clearly favored Wills. I was struck by the inaccuracies and oversimplifications, which, if relied upon, could put someone in a much worse position than if they hired an experienced estate planning attorney to give proper advice tailored to the individual’s situation. I wish I could post a heavily redlined version of that ad just to illustrate how NOT simple estate planning (and the surrounding analysis) is, even in the simplest cases.

“It depends” is a favorite phrase of attorneys for good reason.

One of the inaccuracies in this ad was a claim that Wills are easier and cheaper to amend. Wills actually have stricter execution requirements than Living Trusts (though Trusts can be more complicated documents). The ease of changing a Will or Trust varies wildly depending on the changes being made. Additionally, it isn’t always cheaper to amend a Will or Trust than to start from scratch. An attorney would need to thoroughly review the original document to draft an amendment, which takes a lot of time. Plus, amendments can create a host of issues that can be avoided by executing a new document, particularly if changes are made to how the estate will be distributed.

This is not to say amendments are never appropriate or that Trusts are better than Wills. This is very much a case-by-case basis. This is precisely where you lose me with these cheap/free online resources claiming to have a one-size-fits-all solution for everyone. Do yourself and your family a favor and use an actual (human) estate planning attorney who will take the time to go through your circumstances and your options and help you pick the best route for you.