The problem
As lawyers we hear this every week, I just want a simple Will. Your client thinks that if they keep the document simple, they will make it easier for their family. Your client has been sold the idea that they can complete an Estate Plan in 20 minutes.
How do you get a client to seriously consider the decisions that their family need them to make, instead of telling themselves this is a “simple” situation?
THE recording and papers
This Webinar has already occurred on Wednesday 29 April 2026. We will run it again, but you can buy the recording and the papers in the mean time. We talked about a number of things including how do we get the client to abandon this “simple Will” idea and seriously consider a discretionary testamentary trust or a more comprehensive Estate Plan? We worked through one set of slides that try to disavow the clients of these presumptions, and then another set of slides explaining why a DTT may be the answer. This CPD will cost $90 and you can get the recording and the past papers using the button below.
In keeping with previous CPDs, you will get a $50 discount code if you email a requisition from the Supreme Court in relation to an Estate matter and provide enough information for the requisition to make sense. Email it to janis@janisconsults.com and then I will send you the discount code and a survey for you to complete with further questions.
I don’t believe that the answer is to be negative with the clients. My example slides do not respond to the client by telling them that their family will fight, or that DIY Wills are rubbish. I also don’t talk about “you get what you pay for”. I talk about how a simple, short document will not achieve their goal. Their goal is to make their death as easy as possible for their family, and to make the administration of their Estate as easy as possible. The way to achieve that is to leave a comprehensive Estate Plan, not a two page document.
Additionally for any clients who are Gen X or younger we can no longer get away with saying trust me, it’s complicated but I am an expert. The clients want to know why. They want to know how this will help their family. In the Webinar I talk through how to use these slides to show a client that a short document that says leave everything to everyone equally may not work for their family. Many of these slides can be used for a normal Estate Plan, or to respond to questions about why the Will is five pages instead of two pages long. This is not exclusively a Webinar for DTTs, it is about helping clients to understand that short documents don’t make their Estates easier for their families. Some of the examples could be dealt with using an appropriation clause instead of a trust, and that is the point. You are giving the client the information that they need to make an informed choice.
If you would like to get the slides, and the recording of the Webinar, then click on the button below. It costs $90 to get the recording and the precedents.
