Don't take a chance on unregulated will writing companies

There is a new article in a UK newspaper (http://www.guardian.uk.co/ ) that reports that thousands of people are being "ripped off" by companies or individuals offering will-writing services. The basic problem is that the companies are unregulated so that when it's found out that they didn't know what the heck they were doing or there is some other problem, there's nothing the consumer can do. Click here to read the article.

If anyone is thinking of hiring someone other than a lawyer to draw up a will for them, PLEASE read this article. You will find it educational.

As regular readers of this blog will know, I am in favour of people doing certain tasks on their own. In fact, I write books to help people do that. But I always stress to people that they need advice from lawyers and accountants, not unregulated people whose only attraction is that they are cheaper than a lawyer. Believe me, you are better off doing your own will than hiring anyone other than a lawyer.

The article above, as I said, is British, not Canadian. The problem is not nearly as widespread here as it is in the UK. But I have seen advertisements here for "paralegals" and other people offering to write a will for members of the public. Anyone with a computer and printer could have put up that ad, and the sad thing is, some people will fall for it. The advertisement recently put up in the lobby of my condo says "you don't need a lawyer for everything". That's true, you don't, but an unlicensed paralegal is not the answer for someone who needs a will.