WHY GO TO A LAWYER?
by
Lawrence Gale, Estate Lawyer

I am forever being asked by clients, “Why can't I just write my own will? Why not put everything in both names? Why can't I just use a simple form from the stationary store? Why do I need an expensive lawyer at all? All I want to do is leave it to my kids. I'm not rich. Why do I even need a will?”

The larger and more complex the estate, the more a lawyer is needed. Wealthy clients intuitively understand the need for a lawyer. In general, it is clients with more modest estates who question the need for legal consultation. For purposes of this column we will look at the need for a lawyer with someone with a modest estate.

A good lawyer will spend time with you; interviewing you and asking questions about you and your family; explaining issues and potential problems that you may not have known or thought about. The lawyer's suggestions may save your family thousands of dollars in the future along with avoiding delays and even the wrong people inheriting your estate.

Let us assume a working client with a small house worth $175,000, and perhaps $10,000 in savings with one married daughter and a grandchild, age two. The client wants to leave the house to her daughter. The client has a simple typewritten will, which provides, “I leave everything to my daughter."

In the above example, has the client considered any group term life insurance at work, which will make the estate larger? If so, who is the beneficiary? What if her daughter dies in a car crash at the same time with the mother? What if the daughter dies 15 minutes earlier or 15 minutes later? Does the mother want the granddaughter to inherit instead or the son-in law? If the granddaughter inherits, how is the money to be held for a two year old? What if the mother is in a coma, but does not die, who can pay her bills? Sell the house? Provide care? Who makes medical decision? Is avoiding Probate a good idea or not? Is a conservatorship required for someone in a coma? Is a Living Trust a better idea than a will? What about an Advance Directive? :Is the typewritten will valid? Does it have to be notarized or witnessed?

In a very short meeting a lawyer can answer all of these questions and provide solutions. Each client has different ideas requiring different solutions. At least a meeting with a qualified lawyer can settle the client’s questions and often prevent disasters and large expenses later.

Email your questions/comments to: guest@the-ddic.com

Editorial note: Larry died shortly after completing a second column for DDIC. Our hearts are heavy and we send condolences to his family. The second column will run in the future