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Post by Elric of Melnibone on Jun 7, 2005 15:04:20 GMT -6
I am thinking of hiring a lawyer to do our wills. What do I look for...I may want him for other stuff like when I buy a home or other big purchases. Can anyone help me?
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Post by Dea on Jun 7, 2005 19:42:55 GMT -6
Sorry, I just hired my first one for the divorce and that was it...other than for house closings which were arranged by the bank.
For wills though, you might consider the software for producing a will. They are pretty straight-forward.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2005 23:03:44 GMT -6
Shop around, basic stuff like what you listed can be done by most monkeys with a law degree, so you just need to save money. I am thinking of hiring a lawyer to do our wills. What do I look for...I may want him for other stuff like when I buy a home or other big purchases. Can anyone help me? |
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Guru
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Up there Cazaly
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Post by Guru on Jun 12, 2005 9:03:08 GMT -6
If it's a simple will I would do it myself - it will have legal value - or use the software Dea suggested. If you want to leave your estate to your dog's next of kin though I would go see a solicitor of some sorts.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2005 15:15:12 GMT -6
I don't know any in Texas, but my step-mom specializes in wills and trusts and my dad specializes in real estate law here in New Mexico. If you think that anyone in your family might be a money grabbing SOB, get a great attorney. Otherwise, most attorneys can do a basic will, but many don't like to.
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Post by Rebel Yell on Jun 14, 2005 2:45:35 GMT -6
I just found out that most lawyers have most of what they do on disk. All they do is insert the names, dates and print. This goes for wills, divorces, land purchaces. Makes you wonder what they went to school for.
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Post by Dea on Jun 14, 2005 10:25:56 GMT -6
I found out that too! I was pretty disappointed about that. Makes you feel you could do everything yourself. In fact, you can, it's just seemingly complicated, so you end up turning to a lawyer just for peace of mind in the processing of the paperwork. What a rip.
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Post by sally104 on Jun 18, 2005 3:02:54 GMT -6
Go to a lawyer. They should be skilled in making a will bullet proof. My grandfather wrote his will himself and it was so vague my father who was the executor spent years fending off challenges
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Goldblum
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Pro in Theory
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Post by Goldblum on Jun 20, 2005 22:04:35 GMT -6
You can write a will yourself, but having taken a class in wills, I would highly recommend getting a lawyer to at least look over it because there are many little things that could make the will invalid.
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Post by thelittleun on Sept 21, 2005 7:53:54 GMT -6
I am thinking of hiring a lawyer to do our wills. What do I look for...I may want him for other stuff like when I buy a home or other big purchases. Can anyone help me? If you had been in England I could have done it for you, if you could afford my $200 an hour fee that is. |
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Post by blakely on Sept 21, 2005 9:03:11 GMT -6
I am thinking of hiring a lawyer to do our wills. What do I look for...I may want him for other stuff like when I buy a home or other big purchases. Can anyone help me? They sell books and disks but you can find them at most libraries. Be sure to check the law libraries in your area, too. Where I live, the library has them as ebooks. Make sure you look at the latest editions. It is something you should be able to do yourself. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 11, 2005 10:35:47 GMT -6
Even if you could get a disk from your local library, it is only good if 1) it was created to be used specifically for your state's laws (and it is not enough that it your state is listed along with 5-10 other states); 2) it reflects the current law in your state; 3) you choose all the correct forms; and 4) you correctly fill out and file/authenticate those forms. There is no easy button when it comes to your legal rights--never doubt that a lawyer's legal training, skills and experience are required to navigate even the best set of pre-set forms. Lawyers spend big bucks on continuing legal education and software (forms) updates to keep on top of the ever-changing law in their state, so it is inconceivable to think anyone could create a disk of forms which accurately reflects the current laws in multiple states at any one point in time. To do it correctly would be impracticle and cost prohibitive, if not impossible. The only exception might be bankruptcy (though the federal laws on bankruptcy are changing dramatically this month) and even if you were to brave the federal courts without a lawyer, bankruptcy forms are available in most federal districts for free from the clerk and/or on the federal bankruptcy court's website.
Final thought: You wouldn't think of performing surgery on your own appendix, right? The same principle applies when you are thinking of performing legal work on your own estate, the probate of a loved ones estate, the termination of your marriage, or the custody/support of your children.
Litigation attorneys, trial and appellate prosecutors, and the like, we only WISH it was as easy as filling out forms. That will never happen as long as there are creative defense attorneys thinking up creative new ways of making the same, lame (meritless)arguments for their clients.
Cheers, Mel
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