Most people know the phrase "Do It Yourself" or “DIY.”
For me, “Do It Yourself” calls to mind weekend trips to Home Depot and learning how to do something new instead of paying someone else to do it.
Also Pinterest. It calls to mind Pinterest.
That’s part of what makes DIY projects so great: Who doesn’t love saving money and feeling proud of something they did themselves?
But there is a limit to what you can do yourself, right?
I can do some home improvement stuff myself, like painting walls or breaking the nice faucet on the kitchen sink.
However, things would get really dicey if I tried to act as my own plumber, excavator, or electrician without proper training and experience.
Doing those tasks incorrectly could have disastrous consequences.
The same is true of "Do It Yourself" estate planning:
A poorly designed estate plan can lead to massive probate expenses, family infighting (and ruined relationships), having your legal documents rejected, and much, much more.
The Dangers of “Do It Yourself” Estate Planning
If you aren’t familiar with “Do It Yourself” estate planning services, this is how the process usually goes:
Step 1: Pay hundreds or thousands of dollars to an online website.
Step 2: Get access to blank generic forms.
Step 3: Figure out the right options to achieve the exact goals you want while addressing any risks or problems your family might face, figure out how to properly fill out the forms, sign the documents and have them witnessed and/or notarized according to the laws of your state, and comply with any other applicable requirements.
Even for many lawyers — at least, the ones who don’t practice estate planning everyday — this is no easy task. And getting any part of it wrong could mean your entire estate plan gets rejected.
That’s the biggest problem with “Do It Yourself” estate planning: you are doing it by yourself.
You are on your own.
But you don’t have to be. After all, that’s what attorneys are for!
Here are 3 important reasons why you should use a qualified attorney to create your estate plan instead of doing it yourself.
1. One size does NOT fit all.
Estate planning is intricate and nuanced. An estate plan that is not specifically tailored to you could adversely affect your heirs and other loved ones.
Related post: Estate Planning Basics You Need to Know
DIY estate planning ignores this part of the process.
Generic forms do not take into account your specific financial situation, family relationships, long-term goals, fears, concerns, tax consequences, etc.
These factors can have a huge impact on what estate planning documents are best for you.
Here’s a good example:
A client recently came to my office asking for a Last Will and Testament. He seemed very certain about it, so I asked him why he wanted a Will.
He said that he didn’t want his family to have to worry about probate.
Needless to say, he was surprised when I told him a Will has to go through probate after his death.
I’ll say that again but in bold italics, so you’ll know how important it is:
A Will still has to go through probate.
My client was floored.
He had thought that having a Will meant his family wouldn’t need to deal with probate.
Unfortunately, he’s not alone. There is a widespread belief that having a Will avoids probate — which is likely why many people feel comfortable writing their own Will.
Related post: What is the Difference Between a Will and a Trust?
After talking with my client for a while and learning about his family, finances, and goals, we crafted a different estate plan that was better for him and his family.
You don’t get that kind of personalized advice with generic DIY estate planning forms.
As a result, you might end up paying a lot of money for a legal document that you do not need or that does not do what you want it to do.
Most people do not understand the intricate differences between estate planning documents. Even many attorneys — unless they have years of estate planning experience — adequately understand the pros and cons of the estate planning options available to you.
Related post: What’s the Difference Between a Will and a Living Will?
But an experienced estate planning attorney can advise you, guide you through the decision-making process, and help you get the results you want.
2. Estate planning involves a lot of laws.
That might sound obvious, but I still feel the need to say it.
In Oklahoma, any given estate plan might interact with dozens of laws scattered across Title 15, Title 16, Title 18, Title 30, Title 31, Title 43, Title 54, Title 58, Title 60, Title 84, and elsewhere.
And that's just for basic estate plans.
You will also need to comply with a host of complex federal laws, rules, and regulations for certain trusts, asset protection vehicles, healthcare documents, and more.
Related post: What is Asset Protection?
There are literally thousands of laws (both state and federal) which can impact your estate plan. And if you fail to account for any of them, your estate plan may not do what it is designed to do.
In other words, there is no room for error.
So what does this have to do with “Do It Yourself” estate planning?
Not a single DIY estate planning provider will ensure that your documents satisfy all of the federal or state laws that could impact your estate plan (or, for that matter, achieve the results you desire).
In fact, every packet you buy from LegalZoom or LawDepot will have a disclaimer that they do not offer legal advice and that you accept the risk of failure by using their forms.
That’s not very assuring.
The only way to ensure your estate plan will pass legal muster is to consult with a qualified attorney. And while DIY estate planning may seem like a bargain, just remember: you get what you pay for.
Unfortunately, you cannot learn everything you need to know from Google.
Attorneys go to school for years to learn these laws, study them for years more, and then put them into practice and work with them everyday to make sure that they get it right.
And “getting it right” is absolutely crucial when it comes to estate planning.
Because the consequences of getting it wrong can be devastating — not just to you, but to your loved ones as well.
3. “Formalities” can make or break your estate plan.
Will your estate plan work when you need it to?
You assume the answer is yes, right? You certainly hope it is. Especially when you just spent hundreds or thousands of dollars on these documents.
Those pieces of paper aren’t worth much if they haven’t been properly prepared and executed.
But it’s not something you should take for granted.
Every state has certain legal requirements — often called “formalities” — that must be followed for a particular estate planning document to be accepted.
Formalities answer questions such as:
How many witnesses need to sign?
Do the witnesses have to be in the room and watch you sign?
Does a Notary Public need to sign?
Can the witnesses or notary be related to you? or do they have to be “disinterested”?
Does your state have certain required language or "magic words"?
Is your signature in the proper place on the document?
And much more.
As you can see, there are a lot of formalities (some of which are confusing). If any one of these formal requirements is not satisfied, then your estate planning document might not work at all.
Let me emphasize that point:
If any box is left unchecked, any ‘t’ uncrossed or ‘i’ undotted, your estate plan could get thrown out the window… It might not work at all.
Without following the applicable formalities, your Will or your Living Trust may not be recognized by the court. In which case, you paid a lot of money for nothing.
With a “Do It Yourself” estate plan, all of these tasks are YOUR responsibility.
And that’s just to sign your documents.
Remember that even if you sign your documents correctly, without proper legal advice (and proper legal language) your estate plan may not do what you want it to do.
To make matters worse, problems with “formalities” often are not discovered until it's too late.
It is likely that no one will see your Will until after your death — at which point, the document cannot be corrected (since you are no longer able to sign).
If some legal requirement isn’t satisfied, your heirs will be out of luck.
Related post: 8 Reasons You Should Have a Living Trust
At that point the problem cannot be fixed. As a result, your family and loved ones could end up spending many times what you "saved" in legal fees by creating your own estate planning documents.
In short, DIY estate planning is a gamble. A risk.
With something as important as your estate plan — and the well-being of your loved ones — is that really a risk you want to take?
Don't put your family at risk.
Every person has unique goals, relationships, and assets. However, a generic form Will tries to fit you into the same box as everyone else. You deserve estate plan that is crafted to address your unique circumstances and your specific wishes.
Having an attorney is pivotal in the estate planning process not just to make sure your documents achieve your goals but to help guide you along the way. They can advise you of unexpected consequences, best practices, and other considerations you hadn’t thought of before. Most important, they can ensure that your documents will work when you need them to work. Don't leave things to chance with a "Do It Yourself" estate plan.
To make sure that your estate plan is properly prepared and executed, contact the experienced Oklahoma City estate planning attorneys at Postic & Bates for a free, no-obligation consultation appointment by clicking the button below.
David M. Postic is an attorney at Postic & Bates, P.C. His practice focuses on estate planning, probate, real estate, trust administration, business planning, and adoption.
You can email David through our Contact Us page or by calling our office at (405) 691-5080.
[As with all our blog posts and other publications and resources, the contents of this article do not constitute legal advice and are subject to our site-wide disclaimer.]
