American Bar Association Guide to Wills and Estates, Fourth Edition: An Interactive Guide to Preparing Your Wills, Estates, Trusts, and Taxes (American Bar Association Guide to Wills & Estates)

Over 300 pages plus appendix of straightforward information about how to draft a will, trust etc. It also has information about generation skipping trusts, business valuations etc. Each chapter starts with a scenario about someone who did it wrong and then the chapter has information about how to do it right. Each chapater also has a 'need to know" section and additional citations where you can do more research about the topic in that chapter. The appendices have sample wills, and forms the reader can (should) complete before going to the attorney to draft their will. This information will cut down on research the attorney might need to do, which will in turn cut down on the billable hours they charge. Nice for the American Bar Association to help hold down the attorney's fees! This book is recent, published in 2012, however it isn't completely timely since Congress only passed the new estate tax exemption in 2013. However, the authors anticipate this and came very close with their predicted $5million exemption. Whether you have a small estate or large, it is to your benefit to learn as much about the law as possible. Skip chapters that don't pertain to you if you wish, but do read about the law and the repurcussions if you don't plan wisely. The estate tax is the government's last chance to get as much of your money as it possibly can so it is up to you to be informed enough to thwart this final confiscation.

Very detailed coverage of the subject

I wish they would come up with a newer version! They have resources online, but nothing beat the feel of a book in your hands!

This book was great as an introduction to estate planning. It brings up a lot of topics that people should think about before they have to when someone dies or gets very sick. There are really good case studies about what worked and didn't work for other people. I would recommend anyone thinking about starting to think about estate planning and anyone who has come to a point in their life that they should be thinking about estate planning to read this book. You will not be able to write your own will or living trust after reading this book, but you will have a good idea about what you need to think about and what documents you need to bring when you meet with a lawyer to make the whole process less painful, time consuming, and expensive.

Excellent reference for all ages and lifestyles. Well-organized and easy to understand with lots of practical, real-life examples. This book was recommended to me by my estate lawyer and it didn't disappoint - it helped me form a list of questions that I needed to ask him. Even if you're not ready to write your will and/or you think you don't need estate documents, this book will help you organize your assets and your estate issues, and get you thinking about what you should and should not do about it - and when. It also contains many websites that you can access for more information about a specific topic and find resources.

Unfortunately I cannot bring myself to read it yet. I know i should,..maybe i'll be strong enough to face it after i finish the taxes this month. Anyway, it gets great reviews from those in the know about such things, so when I am ready to read it and actually face up to my inevitable death this will be my resource. Probably I should not be writing a review, but you may have a similar reaction, so just a thought to share.

Should be a standard reference in every home. Clear explanations and gives understanding useful of legal terms when talking with an attorney to prepare a will.

I read and studied this book before going to a lawyer to have my will and other documents updated. The knowledge gained helped me to discuss the issues with the lawyer on more equal terms. All in all, the purchase and extra effort was worth it in the end.

This is a very basic overview of estate law. It helps the lawyer get his or her own affairs in order, gives much helpful advice an devour ages lawyers to insure they have an estate plan that will work for them. I like this book, but if lawyers have got their estate plans together, they may not need it.