How to update my will with my lawyer now deceased?

[FloridaJim57]

About two years ago my wife and I had our wills created by a lawyer in private practice, not part of a firm. All went well but about six months ago he passed away and we now want to make some changes to our will. His business phone number is disconnected and so far his wife has not responded to messages left on her home phone. Aside from going to a new lawyer and starting the process all over again do we have any other options on how to best update our will? We had hoped his wife would have told us that his clients were turned over to another practice but so far we have not heard from her.

 

[mystang52]

I'm not a lawyer. I'm 99% certain you can make changes to a will, or a new will for that matter, without a lawyer. To play safe, I'd have signed witnesses (maybe notarized as well) to any changes you make. You may also want to look at LegalZoom.com.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

I would contact a new lawyer and let them know you have an existing will to update. Take the existing copy with you and mark it up to reflect your desired changes. HOWEVER, the lawyer may indeed want to use their own template/format/content because that is what they use. So you should be prepared for a will re-write.

I used the same attorney for a will modification after 7 years. He changed the contents quite a lot and used a new format, reflecting what he said were mostly wording changes suggested by the state's lawyer organizations to reflect changes in legislation and court interpretations.

 

[marko]

When it comes to wills, trusts and estate planning, my experience has been that a few hundred bucks to a lawyer is money well spent.

It can save a ton of headaches for your executor.

Just find another lawyer...maybe a healthier one this time...and bring your current will.

As noted, they may want to start over but that's ok. Nothing more dangerous than a marked up, 25 year old will, witnessed and signed by people long dead.

 

[athena53]

If your changes are few and simple a Codicil would work, too. That's a separate document that specifies what exactly changes from your current documents. If state laws (or their interpretations by courts) have changed or you have a lot of changes to make that might not be an option. Codicils were more common back when wills had to be hand-typed and meticulously proofread.

I am not a lawyer.

 

[COcheesehead]

I just did this for my sister’s will. There was an easy to use form I found online where we noted the change, referencing the original will, what it replaced and then we had it witnessed and signed. Super easy.

 

[engineernerd]

If it's been 6 months and you haven't gotten anything recommending a successor law practice, it's very likely you never will.

You could save money by doing it yourself, but if you'd rather feel sure your will is both legally enforceable and reasonably calculated to accomplish your goals, you'll need to pick a new lawyer and bring your documents to him/her. A lawyer with at least one partner (at least one of whom is relatively young and healthy) would probably be a good idea.

One thing I like about having a lawyer help you write your will is that part of the deal is their keeping a copy of your will in their files. If you let whoever you've picked as your executor, and possibly also your heirs, know who your lawyer is then hopefully they can rely on the lawyer having your latest and greatest will available and ready when the time comes.

If you would consider DIY, here is a link to the Florida Statutes: Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine
The Probate Code is Section XLII (Estates and Trusts). It's not too bad to puzzle through if you have the patience, but I can also see not wanting to wade through it in search of the information you need.

 

[Sojourner]

I suspect this may be somewhat controversial advice, but I would take a look at using AI if the changes are fairly simple. It's my understanding that ChatGPT (among others) is quite capable of producing simple legal documents that will hold up in almost any probate court... assuming, again, the issues at hand are not overly complex or obscure. You could tell it something like this: "Write a codicil to my last will and testament that disinherits my nephew and is legally binding in the state of Florida." And then whatever it spits out, you can proofread and modify to ensure there are no errors, etc.

 

[athena53]

I'd be a little wary of using AI to write DIY legal documents. Two peculiarities it may or may not take into account: you can't bequeath real property (land) and other property (jewelry investments) in the same paragraph. Don't ask me why. If you disinherit a spouse or child you must do it explicitly ("I leave my estate in equal parts to my children A, B and C but leave nothing to D because she'll spend it all on designer handbags"). This is based on working for the summers in college with lawyers who handled wills and estates and 2 years of Business Law. I've killed a few brain cells since then.

 

[OldShooter]

When it comes to wills, trusts and estate planning, my experience has been that a few hundred bucks to a lawyer is money well spent ... Just find another lawyer...maybe a healthier one this time...and bring your current will.

Yes. Yes. Yes. One of my several amazements with this forum is the number of people who want to cheap out on what is probably the most important legal document that they will ever sign.

For the future selecting a qualified lawyer that you "click" with is most important but also (1) Select one who is significantly younger than you are on the theory that he/she will probably still be around when you die and (2) Select one in a firm that will probably still be around when you die. Knowing a backup lawyer with the firm may turn out to be important if you are wrong about the longevity of lawyer #1.

Your state bar association may be able to give you some leads for finding the files of the dear departed. They are probably with some other firm. Also see if there is a state Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility that might help.

 

[marko]

Yes. Yes. Yes. One of my several amazements with this forum is the number of people who want to cheap out on what is probably the most important legal document that they will ever sign.

Amazes me too. You've got 2, 3, 4, 5+ million dollars hanging out there just waiting for some glitch or technicality to create havoc for your heirs and you baulk at a $700 legal fee. "Cousin Louie wouldn't ever challenge our will!" Wanna bet?

I think people often don't appreciate their level of wealth and its implications and keep acting like people with fewer resources to the point of peril. If you're a (multi) millionaire, try to act and think like one at least when it matters most.