Introduction to Estate Planning: A Course for Consumers Chapter 5 How to Select an Estate Planning Attorney

Chapter 5: How to Locate and Select a Qualified Estate Planning Attorney

When we started this journey into the world of estate planning, we began to learn how to approach estate planning, certain concepts about wills and other documents and why estate planning is unique to each client. Here in Chapter 5 we discuss how to select a qualified estate planning attorney to assist you with your estate plan.

Selecting a qualified estate planning specialist is important for the following reasons:

1. While many attorneys will do a will or power of attorney for you, they may not be specializing in the field of estate planning. Not being a specialist limits the attorney's skill set and prevents you from the benefits of the advice of a qualified expert.
2. Working with a specialist gives you the best chance to get it right the first time. For example, would you let your dentist do your heart surgery? The idea is to treat attorneys the same as doctors; deal with the right specialist for the job at hand. Here is an article I wrote on this very topic that illustrates this point: Dealing with Specialists in Estate Planning As you will learn in ths chapter, not only is dealing a specialist attorney important to your family and you, there are simple steps to follow so you can find the right one.
3. Learn the process of choosing the right estate planning attorney. Many people mistakenly rely on a referral service such as you might have in your community. These lists are dangerous and usually hazardous to your estate plan. Referral lists are usually paid services that charge people to be listed. They do not vet the people they list and this permits someone with no true expertise and experience to call themselves an estate planner when, in fact, they are not. When you follow the steps laid out below, you can steer clear of these problems.

 

These images show an estate planning meeting in progress. Here are the steps these people used to find their estate planning attorney:

1. Interview and ask for referral from other professionals.

One of the best ways to locate an estate planning specialist is to ask around. Ask your CPA, your banker, your life insurance agent. Professionals know who the experts are and getting referrals from other professionals you already trust is a good starting point.

Interview each person. Insist on a free consultation via phone before you make an appointment. Remember that your estate planning meeting will usually have a charge, so do those phone consultations first.

2. Insist on real estate planning experience and expertise.

As mentioned above, do not use or rely on any referral listing service, radio or TV or internet ads. The attorney you speak with should have, at a minimum the following qualifications:

A. Full time estate planning specialization for at least the last 7 consecutive years. Estate planning is not an area for part timers or people who wear other hats.

B. Membership in the State Bar Association Trust and Estate Section.

C. An AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the international attorney rating service. These ratings are peer ratings and cannot be purchased by the attorney. The AV rating is the highest rating for ability and professionalism an attorney can achieve.

While these qualifications are not difficult to have, you should insist on them when you are choosing your estate planning attorney.

3. Have a clear understanding before beginning how the attorney bills and the time frame for completion of your estate plan.

As we are exploring in this book, there are several integrated steps in every client's estate plan. Make sure you are clear what those steps will be for you, how many meetings to expect, the time frame for the process and each step, what your homework between each meeting is, and how the attorneys fees and costs will work.

Once you have selected your estate planning attorney and understand the process for your estate plan, it is time to begin. In our next chapter, we start our discussion of the components of every estate plan and begin to dissect the tools of estate planning such as wills, trusts and related documents.

I hope you are enjoying this book on estate planning. Since the book is published in this interactive format, we are able to adjust our content as we proceed based on your comments. Please feel free to comment and offer suggestions as they are greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Bernie Greenberg

Specialization: Don’t Leave Home Without It! 4 Reasons Why You Should Care About Specialization

4 Reasons Why Specialization Matters

Recently I asked my readers how they feel about specialists, those experts who limit their work to a limited area of specialization. I thank Denver attorney, E.C. Lewis for sharing her thoughts about specialization.

The concept of “specialization” is not limited to professionals like lawyers and doctors. Many fields have specialists as I discovered concerning auto mechanics. Before I list the four reasons that dealing with a specialist is the smartest move you will ever make, let’s explore specialization further.

A specialist is someone who limits their work to a certain and defined area. Certain professional specialties even have certifications required before the specialization can be claimed. Here is a good working definition:

Someone who has limited their work to a defined area, either has a certification or recognized expertise in that area, and does that work full-time with at least seven consecutive years in the specific area.

What are your thoughts about this definition? If we accept this definition, then when isn't someone a specialist? Consider these examples of someone who is not a specialist:

1. Advertising on TV, radio, or social media.
2. Simply claiming to be one.
3. Accepting any work that comes their way without limiting their work to the one certain area.

There are four reasons to work with a specialist in whatever area you are considering. They are:

1. Specialists are experts.
My favorite example of this is in the medical field. If I break my leg, I am not going to the heart doctor. I know this seems silly, but it illustrates the point of expertise. Don’t you want to deal with someone who is an expert in your area of need?

2. Specialists are more competent.
Competence is a function of two factors: first is knowledge, the knowing of the expert's area; and second, experience. Nothing beats the value of having done something many times, this is how we learn, how to avoid mistakes and problems and how to improve. Consider this: the military; fire fighters or athletes are constantly training, constantly repeating, over and over what it is they do. I have heard this referred to as developing unconscious competence. From repetition comes experience and from experience comes competence. Specialists are simply more competent.

3. Specialists protect you.
Only a competent expert can anticipate what might go wrong in a project. Being able to anticipate problems allows the specialist to protect you from these risks. Here’s an example from my life: I tried to install a carpet strip at the edge of the kitchen. I am not a specialist in this type of work. Not knowing the material of the floor almost cost me big as the nail I was attempting to use exploded and hit my arm like a bullet. When I had a carpet specialist look at the project, they had an answer that was safe and effective. That is a perfect example of how a specialist protects their customers. They know the problems and now to solve them before someone gets hurt.

4. Specialists save you money.
Since a specialist knows what to do, how to avoid and solve problems, the specialist can get the project done timely, without loads of “do-overs” and since problems are avoided, usually at the lowest cost. Here’s another example: a client of mine needed to replace the timing chain on his older vehicle. He got two estimates, one from a specialist and one from his buddy. The buddy’s estimate was 40% lower than the specialist. Can you guess the result? That’s right, he went with the lower estimate and by the time the buddy's work was repaired properly he had spent over twice the estimate from the specialist. I also see this in my estate planning practice. Clients will try and create their own estate planning documents or work with non-specialists and end up spending huge fees to fix the problems created.

My point with this article is that there are actual and measurable benefits to dealing with specialists. This is true in any field, car repairs, medical services, legal services and in my specialty estate planning. Since there are so many people offering services in areas that they don’t specialize in, being aware of this can help you protect yourself and your family.

What are your thoughts about specialists? Please join our conversation and comment here or send me an email with your comments. Thank you.

Bernie Greenberg