Reading Between the Lines: Why a Professional Estate Plan is Far Superior to a Cookie Cutter Online Will

Web sites like Legal Zoom, Total Legal, and others offer inexpensive, pre-formatted wills designed for people to simply plug in a few names, some items, and, presto chango, you have a will. Many people purchase these “cookie cutter” documents under the mistaken belief that this type of will is going to protect and properly disburse their assets to loved ones. Unfortunately, that often isn’t the case. Let me preface this by stating that I fully appreciate the value of the services offered by Legal zoom and other pre-made document web sites. For many people, the prospect of creating a will, or an in-depth estate plan, is intimidating. These pre-made documents provide guidance and can assist someone who is starting from scratch with their estate plan and/or who does not have many assets but wants to be sure whatever they have goes to their loved ones. But here is where these...