By: The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys
Have you ever been invited to an estate planning seminar to learn about wills and living trusts? You might have been hesitant to attend, fearing you’d be faced with a “hard sell” or asked to spend lots of money for services you don’t really need. Or you might have wondered why you should go to a seminar when you could just search for estate planning information online.
Avoid Information Overload
Estate planning is a complex topic, and it can involve abstract concepts that are only familiar to experienced estate planning attorneys. If you Google “estate planning,” “will” or “living trust,” you’ll likely be faced with information overload. You’ll have mountains of loosely related bits of information, but no real way to connect all the dots to form a clear picture of what you need or how to implement it.
That’s why an estate planning seminar presented by a licensed estate planning attorney can be an invaluable first step in the creation of an effective estate plan.
Talk to an Expert
A seminar is the perfect way for people seeking solid, reliable information to connect with friendly, helpful experts. When you attend an estate planning seminar, you learn about state and federal estate planning and tax laws and how they apply to you and your family. The seminar will also provide you with the pros and cons of various planning options, so you can evaluate what is best for your family. You are also able to ask questions and make sure you understand all the topics covered in the presentation. The opportunity to evaluate the presenter’s demeanor, communication skills and depth of knowledge is another benefit.
At the end of the seminar, with your newly acquired knowledge, you should be in a position to make a decision and move forward with your planning. Additionally, you’ll know where to look if you need more information.
Choose a Licensed Attorney
Estate planning attorneys enjoy presenting seminars because they are able to share their expertise while getting to know an audience full of people. This chance to interact is a perfect way for the attorney as well as the attendees to decide whether they are a good fit to work together on building an estate plan.
When you attend a seminar presented by a licensed estate planning attorney, you’ll enjoy some added benefits. Attorneys are bound by a code of ethics that helps to ensure they treat consumers fairly and do not pressure anyone to buy services they don’t need. This means that they are careful about how they present information.
You can also be sure you’ll get balanced, trustworthy facts. They do not represent a particular strategy or document as a one-size-fits-all solution to every estate planning need. Instead, the goal is to educate the public and help families and business owners:
- Minimize their tax burden,
- Protect themselves and their loved ones in the event of disability,
- Protect their loved one’s inheritance from divorce, lawsuits and other claims,
- Avoid unnecessary delays and complications when the time comes to pass on their estate, and
- Leave a lasting legacy.
An estate planning seminar is an efficient and enjoyable way to interact with an estate planning attorney before deciding whether to work with him or her, while learning about a complicated topic that could have a major impact on your family’s future. It sure beats spending hours searching on your own and wondering whether the information you’ve found is reliable and applicable to your situation.
This doesn’t mean you should avoid doing your own research, or that you shouldn’t seek information from a variety of sources. Instead, it means that an estate planning seminar can be an effective way to make sure you understand all the relevant information and gain a clear picture of what you need to do to protect yourself and your family.
