02 Oct Estate Planning Mistakes to Avoid: The Risks of DIY, AI, and Document-Only Estate Planning
Estate planning is one of the most important steps you can take to protect your family and your assets. Estate planning is about much more than preparing a will. A complete estate plan may involve a will, trust, powers of attorney, advance directives, beneficiary designations, deeds, and other documents that must work together.
In an effort to save time or money, some people turn to handwritten documents, online templates, AI-generated documents, or estate planning services that provide document preparation only and specifically state that they do not provide legal advice.
The problem is that estate planning is not simply a document-preparation exercise.
A document can look professional, be properly signed, and still fail to accomplish what you intended.
Estate Planning Requires More Than Filling Out Forms
The right estate plan depends on your assets, family circumstances, goals, and applicable law.
Questions that may need to be considered include:
- How are your assets titled?
- Who is named as beneficiary on your accounts and insurance policies?
- Do you have a blended family?
- Do you own a business or real estate?
- Are any beneficiaries minors or individuals with special needs?
- Do you want to avoid probate?
- Who should manage your finances if you become incapacitated?
- Will your beneficiary designations override provisions in your will or trust?
- If you create a trust, what assets need to be transferred to it?
Simply generating documents does not necessarily answer these questions.
The Risks of “Document Preparation Only” Services
Some estate planning companies and services offer to prepare wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and other documents while expressly stating that they are not providing legal advice.
That distinction matters.
Document preparation may give you completed forms, but it may not include individualized legal advice about whether those documents are appropriate for your circumstances or whether they will accomplish your goals.
For example, a document preparation service may not advise you about:
- Whether a will or trust is more appropriate for your situation
- How property ownership affects your estate plan
- Whether beneficiary designations conflict with your documents
- How to properly fund a trust
- Potential tax consequences
- How Oklahoma law affects your particular family situation
- Whether additional planning is needed for a business, real estate, minor children, or other circumstances
The documents themselves are only one part of estate planning. The legal advice behind them is critically important.
The Hidden Problems with DIY Estate Planning
Online templates and fill-in-the-blank documents can seem convenient, but they are generally designed for broad use rather than your particular circumstances.
Common problems include:
Improper Execution
Estate planning documents have specific execution requirements. A document that is not properly signed, witnessed, or notarized when required may create problems when someone later needs to rely on it.
Missing or Inconsistent Provisions
Generic documents may omit important provisions or contain terms that conflict with one another.
Failure to Coordinate the Entire Estate Plan
Your will or trust does not necessarily control every asset you own. Joint ownership, payable-on-death designations, transfer-on-death designations, retirement accounts, and life insurance may determine where property goes regardless of what your will says.
Failure to Fund a Trust
Creating a revocable trust does not automatically transfer your property into it. If assets are not properly titled or beneficiary designations are not coordinated with the plan, the trust may not accomplish the probate-avoidance goals you expected.
What About AI-Generated Estate Plans?
AI tools can generate sophisticated-looking legal language very quickly. But well-written language is not the same thing as legal advice.
An AI-generated estate plan may:
- Use provisions that are not appropriate under Oklahoma law
- Omit important provisions because the right questions were never asked
- Include contradictory or unnecessary language
- Fail to account for how assets are actually owned
- Fail to coordinate beneficiary designations
- Create a trust without addressing how it should be funded
- Produce documents that appear complete even though important planning issues remain unresolved
That last problem can be particularly concerning. An obvious mistake may cause someone to seek help. A document that looks correct can create false confidence that the estate plan is complete.
Handwritten Wills Have Their Own Risks
Oklahoma recognizes handwritten wills, commonly called holographic wills, when statutory requirements are satisfied. But handwritten wills can create additional problems.
Questions may arise about whether the document satisfies Oklahoma law, whether it was actually written by the decedent, what particular language means, or whether property omitted from the document passes under Oklahoma intestacy law.
Even when a handwritten will is ultimately admitted to probate, ambiguity or execution issues can create additional expense and delay.
The Problem May Not Appear Until It Is Too Late
One of the biggest risks with estate planning mistakes is timing.
A problem with a contract can sometimes be corrected by the parties. An estate planning problem may not be discovered until the person who created the plan has died or become incapacitated.
At that point, the person who could best explain what was intended may no longer be available to clarify the document or sign something new.
The family may instead be left dealing with:
- Probate proceedings that could have been avoided
- Assets passing to unintended beneficiaries
- Conflicting beneficiary designations
- An unfunded trust
- Unclear or ineffective powers of attorney
- Additional court proceedings
- Increased legal expenses
- Disputes among family members
Estate Planning Is About the Plan, Not Just the Documents
A good estate plan starts with understanding your circumstances and objectives. The documents should then be drafted to carry out that plan.
That includes considering how your assets are owned, how beneficiary designations should be structured, whether a trust should be funded, who should have authority during incapacity, and what should happen after your death.
The goal is not simply to leave behind a collection of signed documents. The goal is to leave behind a plan that actually works.