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Decide whether you need an attorney. Ask family and friends for recommendations. Visit your state or local bar association's website. Search for attorneys who are board certified specialists. Look at membership listings for professional groups of estate planners. Visit websites of attorneys and law firms. Check the bar records of attorneys you're interested in interviewing.
If you own very little real estate or personal property, you may be able to use a document kit and plan your estate on your own. However, if you own real estate, have retirement or investment accounts, or own your own business, you should seek professional legal assistance. If money is an issue, it may be possible for you to find an attorney who is willing to consult with you on a few limited issues, or to review documents you've drafted yourself. If you decide to consult an attorney, compile documents and information about your property and assets, and think about what is likely to happen in the coming years, how much your property would potentially be worth, and who you want to have ownership or control over it. The types and quantity of assets you have will in part determine both what kind of attorney you should look for and how much that attorney will charge you to draft a plan for your estate. Your friends and family are a good place to start because they know you and can anticipate who you would personally like. At the same time, be wary of possible ulterior motives, especially if you have a relatively large estate and the person you're asking for a recommendation stands to gain or believes she'll be listed as an heir. Always carefully vet an attorney before hiring him, even if he was recommended by a close friend or relative. You may have an attorney you use for other matters. If so, ask her if she knows an estate-planning attorney she could recommend. An attorney would have a good understanding of another attorney's status, experience, and professional reputation. Bar associations have lists of their members, and often allow you to search by specialty or area of practice. State bar associations often offer a lawyer referral service that enables you to meet briefly with a pre-screened attorney after answering a few general questions about your needs. This initial consultation typically is cheaper than what attorneys would charge if you didn't use the referral service. Some states allow attorneys to become certified specialists in a particular area of law, such as trusts and estates. If professional certification is available in your state, the bar association will have information on it. Before applying for certification, an attorney must have a certain number of years of experience practicing law in the area, usually at least five. To become certified, an attorney must submit a number of professional references, take additional courses in that area of law, and pass a lengthy written exam. The best attorneys often are members of professional societies or other groups, where they can share knowledge and experience with other estate planners. One example is the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel. Its members frequently publish articles and present topics at continuing legal education seminars, so if you find an attorney listed as a member you can be more confident that she is an estate planning expert. You also can search the member directory of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys. Once you have the names of some attorneys or firms you're interested in pursuing, check out their website to research further into their background and practice. Keep in mind that an attorney's website is also a marketing tool. You are seeing what he wants you to see, so the things he chooses to emphasize or promote on his website give you a good idea of his interests and his professional comfort zone. Look at any background or biographical information the attorney has listed. You not only want to review this for experience and education in estate planning, you also want to see if the attorney seems like someone you can relate to. For example, maybe you have a beagle, and you notice on one attorney's bio page that he says he breeds beagles. Since your estate planner will likely be in your life for a long time, it can be important to have common interests. Pay attention to the attorney's social media presence. If she has active social media accounts that are updated regularly, or runs a blog where she regularly posts about new developments in the law, you can be assured that she is responsive to her clients and keeps up-to-date on important issues in her practice area. Before you schedule any interviews, go back to the bar association's website and look up each attorney's name. You want to make sure all attorneys you interview are licensed and in good standing. If any of your prospects have significant complaints or professional disciplinary action on their record, remove them from your list.