Nolo's Simple Will Book [With CDROM]

This book (6th edition) has taken a BIG weight off of my mind regarding writing a will. My husband and I currently don't have a will (and apparently have lots of company - reportedly 60% of Americans don't have wills), but I am in the process of changing that with the reassuring help of this book. Yes, you CAN write your own legal will, and it truly isn't difficult. As this book points out, even lawyers use standard forms for wills which they customize to their clients. The NOLO CD that accompanies this book also contains standard forms which you can modify, and it walks you through the different parts of a will and the various decisions you need to make. It also flags decisions/areas that you need to give particularly careful consideration. And it flags more complications situations that might or do require a lawyer (such as, wanting to give more than 50% of your estate to someone other than your spouse). I will say that our situation isn't complicated, our "estate" basically consists of our home and some savings/investment accounts, and we have young children to provide for. I feel very confident that a will written using this book/CD will be completely legal and appropriate. But I think this book would be quite valuable even to people planning to use a lawyer for more complicated estate planning needs, as it explains wills and their components in clear, concise terms.

This book comes with a CD containing both a simple will form and mix and match clause forms for more complex wills. All forms are in Rich Text Format files; open the files, cut and paste their text into your own file, and replace the blanks with your own text. Print and you're done. All that's left is the really hard part: making decisions about how to satisfy your obligations and dispose of your estate.

I had no idea that writing a will could be so easy! I was convinced that only lawyers could draft wills and if a friend hadn't suggested this book I would have wasted a lot of money on legal fees. Nolo's Simple Will Book translates all of the legal jargon that lawyers love into plain, easy to understand english. I was able to leave property to my brother, create a trust for my children, and name an executor to handle my affairs. The CD-ROM even gives you the legal forms you'll need in a user-friendly format. Thanks to this book, drafting my will was easier, faster, less stressful, and (best of all) cheaper then I ever imagined.

This book shows how easy it is to write your own will. Unless your situation is complex, you will find there is no need to hire a lawyer. The author assures you that if you follow directions, the will is valid and will be duly executed when the time comes. Be sure to read the text, as it offer good guidance. Resist the temptation to jump directly to filling out one of the many sample wills provided.

I was pleased with this book as it is written in straightforward, clear language with easy to follow steps. The only thing I wished it had was a disk containing the forms that you must otherwise type out (however, I believe another Nolo book has this). It seems to cover all the basics and even has a chapter on wills as an extra bonus. The book contains sample forms that you can use which is helpful.