South Florida Estate Planning Law : Florida Estate Planning Lawyer & Attorney : David Shulman Law Firm : South FL Wills & Trusts

I apologize for not updating this, my continuing series (and my blog in general) in which I order estate planning documents from an Internet document service. As I previously wrote, I attended the ABA Techshow in Chicago, and got sick when I came back.  Between the late nights, and the Chicago cold, and the uncirculated airplane air, I've been fighting a pretty bad cold.  I'm really feeling better though, but not 100% yet.

To refresh your recollection, I am going through the process to see what a customer of this site is offered and what type of documents they produce.  As I've said, my philosophical issue with these services is that they allow customers to choose what they want, instead of having a professional discuss with them what they need

In my last installment, I decided that I needed a Living Trust (even though I would never recommend a Living Trust for someone in my circumstances).

The first question:  What type of Living Trust would I like to make?

I don't know the answer, so I click on the Help button.

As you can see, the Help page is filled with error and ambiguities.  I certainly hope that anyone who actually needs an "AB" trust (generally couples that have more than a couple million dollars) would see an estate planning attorney to begin with.

I decide I want an Individual Living Trust, and move forward.

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This is the third article in a continuing series in which I order estate planning documents from an internet document service to see their quality.  When we last left our hero, I had just clicked on the link from the main page that said "Wills and Living Trusts," which took me to a page that gave me the following options:

Oy.  I understand that there is some confusion in the term "Living Will" because it has the word Will in it.  But my main complaint is and will continue to be is that it lets customers choose for themselves, without any discussion, thought, or review, what they need.  I like to sit down with my clients and go through all of the options and explain to them what each document does, and then discuss each one in terms of the larger picture of their estate planning.

I decide to learn more about Living Trusts.

It's not a bad explanation. However, it doesn't talk about who needs and who doesn't need a Living Trust.  And, it doesn't talk about the most important thing that you have to do with a Living Trust to avoid probate.  You have to fund it properly.  All of your assets have to be transferred into the Trust.  Another thing I learned is that the Service is nowhere near as cheap as I thought it was.  Here is their pricing for customers who decide that they need a living trust:

 So I decide I'll order a Living Trust.  Stay tuned.  Same Bat Time, Same Bat Blog.

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