Your estate is a legal matter. Like it or not, what happens
to your property when you die is a matter determined by
statutes and case law. As an attorney practicing in estate
planning, probate, conservatorships, and estate and trust
litigation, I realize how complex estate planning and
end of life decisions are.
Like a doctor who sits down with you at a regular check
up, asks questions about your health and family, looks
carefully at your hands, listens to your heart, and generally
becomes acquainted with your situation, a good estate
planning attorney understands what issues to look for,
what questions to ask, and what estate planning vehicles
are available to you and advisable for you. There are
many ways to invite trouble or walk directly into it if
you don't realize that truly your estate is a legal matter.
There are many books and courses you could take if you
wished to build your own home and the law allows you to
do so. Many people wisely choose to hire professionals
to do it for them. As you consider passing on your most
valuable asset --your estate-- to your family, friends,
and charities of your choice, you too would be wise to
hire a professional. Depending on your situation, spending
a few hundred or few thousand dollars up front could save
tremendous amounts of money, time, and legal battles after
you die.
Hire a professional and get the job done right. Only
attorneys are allowed to give legal advice. This is not
to preserve a monopoly, it is because the law is often
complex and requires experience, knowledge, and insight
in its interpretation. Attorneys are licensed and trained
to provide that type of advice and do it all the time.
You wouldn't settle for less than a doctor in treating
a disease or less than a licensed contractor when building
a home, and you shouldn't gamble with your estate either.
Did you know that ...
• If you plan to give money to a non-family member
caring for you, your wishes could be frustrated without
special certification of your Will or Living Trust?
• If you have no Will or Living Trust, under some
circumstances your parents could receive a share of your
estate?
• If you intend to cut out children or others who
would normally inherit from you, even executing a valid
Will or Living Trust may not fully protect your estate
and could expose your estate to a costly legal battle?
• Without a carefully drafted Power of Attorney
for Health Care, any interested person can challenge decisions
made under your Power of Attorney for Health Care?
• Although Living Trusts are very popular today
and are often appropriate, probate may still be desirable
under certain circumstances despite the cost and time
involved?
You deserve the security of knowing that your estate
is properly prepared. Don't settle for less.
Why not a Document Preparation Service?
How often have you seen ads for legal documents provided
by a document preparation service or prepared by popular
software programs or websites? Before heading in that
direction, there are several things you should know.
No Legal Advice
Document preparation services, software, and websites
cannot by law provide legal advice. The effect of this
law is to prevent untrained and unlicensed persons from
giving wrong, misleading, or incomplete advice with no
accountability. Estate and tax laws are complex and require
training, experience, and insight in their interpretation
and application to any situation. Although such services
often claim that your documents are reviewed by a professional,
they seldom claim that your documents are reviewed by
an attorney. For that reason you should not rely on them.
One Size (Does Not) Fit All
The general posture of document preparation services
is to try to fit you into one of their pre-made documents.
Would you be pleased with a shoe store whose task was
to fit you into the closest sized shoe in their limited
inventory? Naturally, you should be skeptical of any service
that has "just the right document for your situation."
Most often the documents supplied are global, one-size
fits all documents which are marginally tailored to your
specific needs. At Cornell Law Firm, every document is
created by an attorney to meet your specific needs.
Cost Differences Aren't
All That Different
First, we offer a free initial consultation at your location.
No strings attached. Second, we never begin work without
you knowing exactly how much it will cost, in advance.
Third, many popular websites and document preparation
services routinely exaggerate the cost of an attorney.
It's probably not as bad as you think, so spending a few
hundred or few thousand dollars up front depending on
your situation may be the best thing you could do to avoid
losing tremendous amounts of money, taxes, time, and legal
battles after you die.
