Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in California

Hello, My boyfriend did a will from legal zoom living will and trust. He filled it out on line. Is it a valid will if no attorney signed it or it's not noterized by a public notery?


Asked on 9/21/09, 6:41 pm

3 Answers from Attorneys

Chris Johnson Christopher B. Johnson, Attorney at Law

It's valid without an attorney signature, but if it is funded with any real estate, it should be notarized.

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Answered on 9/21/09, 6:44 pm

It IS potentially valid. However, one of the problems with using a non-attorney service for such documents is that they are NOT ALLOWED to give legal advice. This means they are essentially glorified forms fillers with YOU telling them what you want where.

Since no legal advice is given your boyfriend may or may not have done everything appropriately.

It's funny that certain companies advertise that they don't give legal advice, like that's a plus, when in fact "self-help" means that you are responsible for the legal aspects of it.

I've seen VERY bad results from people doing their own wills and trusts.

Consider that sometimes you DO get what you pay for.

Caleb

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Answered on 9/21/09, 7:12 pm
Scott Linden Scott H. Linden, Esq.

You will also need to have 2 disinterested parties witness the will.

I have to mirror prior counsel's concerns about having a document service prepare the will and trust. It is not tailored to your needs and may have effects that you do not want or are unprepared for.

I would still have an attorney review it for you to at least make sure it is doing what you want it to do.

Scott

PasadenaEstatePlanning.com

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Answered on 9/21/09, 7:22 pm


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