As more AI is developed, there will be more web-based companies that you can choose to help you draft your estate plan. Online companies will make promises to lure you in with convenience or an upfront cost that might seem too good to be true. Let’s review why choosing your local law practice is most likely the right choice for you.
The most important reason to use a local estate planner is our knowledge of local laws. When dealing with AI it is only as good as the programmers. Your local law practice should be well-versed in the specific laws and regulations of your jurisdiction which can pay dividends in the future when the need arises. Currently, most of the AI platforms have disclaimers that they can’t give legal or financial advice. In many instances when seeing answers to legal questions generated by AI, the answers are wrong for our jurisdiction.
When working with an attorney, there is value when you have a meeting face-to-face. When using an online platform, if you have an issue and want to contact them, imagine the help that you will receive. Your help will be coming from outside of your jurisdiction. You might not even be contacting someone in the United States, let alone Illinois. If I were in the market to draft documents that would secure my family’s future or name the guardians of my children, I would want to meet with a person face-to-face and have them answer all my questions. When you hire us or a local law firm it gives you the accessibility to meet with a lawyer in person. When we draft your estate plan, we want you to feel welcome and feel like family. We want it to be a calm and stress-free process. Meeting with us in person will help ease those fears and we will be able to ask questions that you might not have thought about.
Estate planning is a personalized service. When you hire us, during our initial consultation we can ask the appropriate questions to form your estate plan. Every estate is different and every estate plan can be different. Our initial estate plan consultation is free. Not only do we want you informed of the situation, we don’t want to rush you and we want you to feel like you made the best decision for you and your family.
Dealing with any legal matter can be stressful and time-consuming. When you have a question about your estate plan or need to update your estate plan, the benefit of being able to contact the office that drafted the plan cannot be understated. There have been countless times that people have come to us to update their estate plan they drafted online and they had no idea what the estate plan stated. No one sits down and explains to you what it says. On multiple occasions, we have gone to a client’s home or a hospital to get the job completed and make sure their estate plan is up-to-date with their wishes. Being able to talk and ask questions at the initial consultation and then at the document signing is valuable.
Remember, legal documents in Illinois have to be signed, witnessed, and notarized correctly for them to be valid in a court of law. Keep that in mind if you must do that step on your own.
Not only should you consider the present but you should think of the future when drafting your estate plan. You should not only think about the service you are getting now but the service your family will get when you pass. When you use my law practice and you pass, the executor or trustee of your estate should contact our office and we can help them fulfill your wishes.
As a small business owner, all of us can do better to support our local economy. By choosing a local business, you contribute to the local economy and help support small businesses in your community. It is so easy to send our money elsewhere to mega corporations but when you are able to spend local it has a snowball effect of positive effects for the local economy. We are committed to this community and support local charities and organizations.
As always, always conduct thorough research and find the best attorney for you. I am confident that with our upfront flat fee pricing and our stress-free approach, you will be happy if you decide to choose my firm for all of your legal needs.