The system is State specific and constantly updated to keep up with changes in State and Federal law. At IEDS.online we utilize the same document assembly software used by over a thousand estate planning attorneys in their own offices. At least it has evolved for savy estate planning lawyers. However, just as preparation of one’s own income tax return has evolved from pouring over hundreds of pages of instruction forms and schedules, pencils with big erasers handy and an adding machine to the simplicity of TurboTax®, TaxAct® or H&R Block®, so too has estate planning document drafting. Essentially, it required the use of legal judgment. Yes, form books were available, but they required a significant knowledge of specific state law and its application to the individual fact pattern in order to be used with confidence. Until recently, the technology was not available to empower individuals to confidently prepare anything beyond a basic cut and paste simple “I Love You Will,” where each spouse left their separate property to the survivor and then to their children. A list of everything included in each of our estate planning document packages can be found here.

There are hundreds of web sites containing a wealth of information you could consult about documents needed to create everything from a basic to a comprehensive estate plan. Remember, what you are doing is substituting your time for the attorney’s and his staff. If you are unwilling or unable to invest some of your own time and money in acquiring the information and tools necessary to do the job right, you should hire a professional. And to be fair, sometimes they do make a good point because most of the time when you first undertake any project you’ve never done before, You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know.

We’ve all seen the fear mongering articles usually written by estate planning lawyers or their friends in the mainstream money rags magazines that equate doing your own estate planning documents with doing your own oral surgery or disarming a ticking time bomb.

You don’t need an attorney to do your own Last Will & Testament.

State Specific Sample Document Packages.

Rule Against Perperutities – Summary of the 50 States.

Life Insurance Change of Beneficiary Form Links.

Estate Planning by the Numbers – Connecting the Dots to Bring Your Estate Plan Into Focus.

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