2007-02-18 14:35:29 · 5 answers · asked by Suz 2 in Business & Finance ➔ Personal Finance
A lawyer can help but any kind of handwritten signed documentment will stand up in court beyond a reasonible doubt. There are also Kits you can purchase at places like the DMV that you can fill out with out a lawyer. Personally I do not trust lawyers and I would not use one unless absolutely necessary.
2007-02-18 14:39:54 · answer #1 · answered by burd p 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's worth a few hundred bucks to get a legal expert to talk through all the issues. Here's a case in point. True story. I had an acquantaince I knew from college who got married and had a little boy--the acquaintance and his wife were then killed in a car crash, leaving the boy an orphan.
They had designated their best friends to get their estate and to provide for care for their boy. They didn't set up a trust or anything to care for the boy--just set up the friends as secondary beneficiaries to life insurance policies.
Well, over time, the funds for the orphaned boy and the funds of the couple taking care of him got comingled. It was no big deal--they intended to provide for college for the boy and all. Then, the couple's marriage breaks up. What happens to the money? What happens to the boy?
In this case, the divorce was amicable and they treated the orphaned boy the way they treated their own kids, and the money was preserved for his college fund and such.
But those are the kinds of things you need to think about and the complexities that can arise. Sudden money makes people stupid.
2007-02-18 15:47:58 · answer #2 · answered by Brad L 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. Are you willing to educate yourself? If so, read up on wills and how to write them according to your region. A will written on a wet bar napkin can be legal and binding, but that might be a stretch if contested.
There are plenty of computer programs that can help you write a will.
I am educated, computer savvy, and not too shabby at writing contracts. I am not a lawyer, therefore I hired one to write mine...
Best of luck.
2007-02-18 14:40:46 · answer #3 · answered by David 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well--considering that courts even break the wills of lawyers..what do you think?
2007-02-18 14:45:51 · answer #4 · answered by cork 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no...there is software that can do it for you.
2007-02-18 14:37:14 · answer #5 · answered by fade_this_rally 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋