Artificial intelligence tools are everywhere now, and people are using them for everything (I used ChatGPT to write this article!). It is natural to be tempted to use AI to create your will, trust, or other estate planning documents.
I understand the appeal. It is fast, inexpensive, and easily accessible.
But in estate planning, a plan that looks correct and a plan that works well—while actually carrying out your goals—is not the same thing.
Estate Planning Requires Decisions, Not Just Documents
Most people need the same core estate planning documents.
The real work is not drafting those documents. It is deciding what should go into those documents in the context of a specific person’s life, goals, and family.
A large part of my role as an estate planning attorney is learning enough to get the full picture—understanding family dynamics, identifying decision-makers, and spotting risks or red flags that are not obvious but are nonetheless there—and then guiding clients to make decisions that minimize the risk of future problems.
That includes things like:
- choosing the right person to act as trustee
- identifying family dynamics that may lead to conflict
- deciding who would be responsible for minor children and how that responsibility should be structured
- recognizing when a plan could create unintended legal consequences
- determining when a specialist should be involved
Those decisions are what shape the estate plan.
You Do Not Know What to Tell AI
Even if AI were capable of generating a solid estate plan, it depends entirely on the information it is given.
Most people do not know what information matters because they have not been guided through the decision-making process first.
People using AI for their estate planning are responsible for providing that input themselves. If something important is missing, misunderstood, or never considered, the plan can be flawed from the start.
Flawed estate plans can lead to disastrous consequences involving courts, delays, and family conflict—and are not discovered until it is too late to fix anything.
You Cannot Evaluate What It Produces
Because I have been reading and writing estate plans for more than 16 years, I can review an estate plan written by someone else and identify what is wrong, incomplete, or likely to cause problems.
Most people cannot.
A will or trust can look polished and reasonable on paper and still be difficult or impossible to implement when the time comes. That failure only shows up later—when someone becomes incapacitated or dies, and the family is left trying to make sense of the plan.
That is when problems surface:
- confusion about what the documents mean
- delays in accessing assets
- conflict between family members
- significant legal fees to fix issues that could have been avoided
- uncertainty or disagreement about who should care for minor children
Some of those problems are expensive to fix. Some are not fixable at all.
There Is No Accountability
When you work with an estate planning attorney, you are not just getting documents. You are getting advice, review, and professional responsibility.
If something is done improperly, there is accountability.
With AI, there is none.
The Bottom Line
Using AI for estate planning may feel efficient, but it creates risk that most people cannot see.
If you want an estate plan that works well under California law, carries out your goals, and avoids unnecessary conflict, delay, and expense for your family, it should be created with the guidance of an attorney.