do you have a will or testament?

shaadi

I don't even know the difference, but I don't want to spend $$$ to talk to a lawyer. A friend told me that you can write your own and it would be valid. What did you include in yours? Especially regarding the care of your baby...

TIA

carrie4g

There are the same thing. I think you can go onto a site like Legal Zoom and buy one. If you can get a template from a friend that would be a good idea as well. But inside the Will you want to appoint someone to care for your child in the event of your death and you should include alternates to that person. You also need to appoint a trustee to manage the $ for the child. Good luck!

jenifairies

it's the same thing. i would highly recommend having a lawyer write one up. the few hundred dollars it would cost would be worth the peace of mind knowing that everything is correct. it's especially important with kids and appointing guardians for the kids and the estate. laws vary on how many witnesses and such, too. you definitely want to make sure it says what you want and that it's legal.

if you still do it yourself, i would say use legalzoom. or you can find free forms at ilrg.com - that's what site we used when i was in school for my paralegal degree.

violetvirgo

We wrote our own and hat it notarized (also had my uncle who is an attorney look it over).  We set up who would get dd in the event we both died as well as appointed a trustee to manage her money we have set up for her, etc.  We also stipulated that a portion of that money must remain untouched until she's 18. 

Ankea97

We hired a lawyer (as one myself, I couldn't imagine even attempting to do it without one)- we ended up doing living trusts.  Yep, it was spending $$ to set it all up- but part of ours will be tax-deductible and I know that we have everything in place for DS (and any future kids).