Do-It-Yourself Legal Services

With the poor economy, more consumers are turning to do-it-yourself legal services online. Here are some of the most popular options along with fees that the sites charge for formulating a typical will and testament form:

U.S. Legal Forms: $24.95 to download a form and $69 if you want attorney advice when filling out the form.

The site provides a general description of a will and its purpose and the user can tailor their will according to state of residence and marital situation.

LegalZoom: $69 to $79 for a basic will form and a 30-day trial of its Legal Advantage Plus service that gives users access to an attorney. The site doesn’t have much information on wills, but it does offer a $50,000 guarantee if a court finds your document invalid because you formulated it online.

Rocket Lawyer: Free with a one-week trial membership and monthly fees of $19.95, $17.95, or $9.99.

No pricing is available until you fill out the document.

LawDepot.com: $19 per will for two-week access, $38 per will for one-year access, or $33 per month for all forms.

The site provides videos that direct users how to fill out the forms. No pricing is available until the document is filled out.

Consumer Reports and TopTenReviews have ranked these sites. Consumer Reports points out that some of the services have outdated tax information, insufficient customization options, too few freedoms, or too much freedom without proper guidance. The report also notes that if you do not have a very simple disposition plan, then you would probably be better off going to an attorney to meet all of your needs.

See Dawn Kawamoto, DIY Legal Sites: Are You the Only Lawyer You Need?, Daily Finance, Mar. 20, 2012.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.