[Dueller]

Now from the lawyer's perspective. At the outset let me say I do not specialize in estate planning. I will handle straightforward simmple estate planning but if its complicated or there is a whole lot of money (say, in excess of $2 million), I refer clients to a true trust and estates specialist.

Having a will is a no brainer...ditto for advanced medical directives/end of life instructions.

The first thing I do is to determine person's wishes. Then I make every effort to figure out a way the will does not have to be probated. E.g., Husband and wife, I cross title all property, both real and personal so when one dies the other takes title by operation of law with POD accounts/survivorship tranfers rather than transferring title by probating the will.

If the will is properly drafted and IF a person has been straightforward and IF the decedent has taken care of their business before hand, then it is relatively simple and inexpensive to probate. When matters have been left unattended in life it often creates a myriad of problems the lawyer has to straighten out.

One final caveat...a will procurred online without the review by an attorney is better than nothing but often despite best efforts something is done and the testator (person making will) doesn't really think about the legal consequences. Case in point on a case I'm handling now. Man dies leaving only one young adult son as sole heir. Makes some specific bequests with regard to various parcels of real property to son but doesn't list all of it because he forgot about some land he owned jointly wwith other people. Names his former sister in law as executrix and also names her as residuary beneficiary.

Now everybody knows what he was trying to do...leave his entire estate to son and if the son died before him to leave it to his sister in law. But that isn't what his will said. So....son gets the specific bequest but everything else (the "rest and residue" of his estate) goes to SIL because that's what the will he got online says. Parol (oral) evidence is inadmissable. Fortunately SIL is perfectly willing for the son to get everything but because the decedent didn't understand the implications of what he put in his will it creates additional work for me to make it happen. So...had he spent $250 with a lawyer on the front end the estate is going to incure more than that to acccomplish what he wanted to do in the first place. And if SIL had not been willing, it could be a real mess.

Final note...people often are hesitant to go thru writing a will as its facing their own mortality. I usually get them to finalize it by making them understand that it is a gift to their family to not have to argue or be torn up emotionally trying to guess what their wishes were during a final illness and what they really wanted after their death.