WillMaker
reviewed by Linda Cameron
Draw up your own (or any family member’s) legal Will, healthcare directions and final
arrangements without having to go to a lawyer.
WillMaker 6 installs from two high density floppy disks and comes with a very adequate
hard copy manual. The manual is written in language that the layperson can understand.
To paraphrase a tidbit from the manual–for the past 500 years, it has been highly
unusual for a person to hire a lawyer to formalize what should be done with his/her
property after death. “However, in the past 50 years, the legal profession has scored
a public relations coup by convincing many people that writing a will without a lawyer
is like doing your own brain surgery. Balderdash!”
Real life examples are given to illustrate points. You may not need the manual to
use the program but it is nice to have it there if you have a question you need answered.
Since WillMaker is a program designed to let ordinary people make legal documents,
it is also important to register your copy of the program as soon as possible because
the laws can change and Nolo Press, the company that produces WillMaker, can alert
their registered customers to changes or possibly any discovered errors in the program.
24-hour access to legal information and updates are provided on Nolo’s Online sites.
Most American citizens can use WillMaker to create legally binding Wills with the
exception of residents of Louisiana.
I was able to create my Will in less than an hour. Ways to save money on estate taxes
and probate fees can be looked up later. Changes and corrections can be made at any
time.
WillMaker works by using an “interview” process similar to the way MacInTax and Quicken
Legal Collection works. The big difference is that WillMaker is a little faster and
more straightforward than other similar programs I have used.
If I had used this program a few years ago when I was named executrix of my grandmother’s
estate, it would have saved me a couple of thousand dollars in lawyer’s fees. Back
then, I knew nothing about estates and inheritance. This program explains everything
I paid a lawyer to tell me.
To start, you can add information about people you will probably be mentioning in
your Will. Their names, birth dates, addresses, etc. is stored in a “Names List”.
The names can be inserted wherever as needed.
As you begin your Will, you have a few choices as to what kind of Will you want.
You can leave it all to one person (such as a spouse) with the provision that if
your spouse doesn’t survive you, it will go to person(s) or organizations you choose
from the Names List.
As you go through the various stages of selecting options, you can always go deeper
into your options. Online Help is also available any time you need it.
Tips are provided to point out certain things that may be important such as leaving
property to underage children. There is plenty of protection from making any big
mistakes.
Each step has a “More Information” option if you are not sure what to do.
I chose a simple Will leaving everything to my husband. If he doesn’t survive me,
then I have other beneficiaries listed.
After using WillMaker 6, I can say I have more confidence in this program for drawing
up a legal Will than any of the other Willmaking programs I have tried previously.
I felt it was easier to use and it took less time. There wasn’t any unanswered questions
to leave me wondering if my Will would hold up.
The only thing left to do now is to print it out and have it signed and witnessed.
So far, I have not gotten around to doing that part.
WillMaker 6 from Nolo Press SRP $69.95
User Group Store price $29.95
phone: 510/704-223
fax: 510/548-5902
URL: http://www.nolo.com/
Attention Newsletter editors, don’t print this part:
This article was reviewed & published in the Mid-Columbia Macintosh User Group
newsletter, The Finder. Anyone wishing to reprint it in their nonprofit publication
may do so as long as credit is given to the author and McMUG plus one copy of the
newsletter containing the review should be sent to:
Linda Cameron 1231 Geneva St. Richland, WA 99352
USER GROUP EDITORS:
Articles posted in this area have been cleared for publication in your newsletters.
We do encourage you to contact the author for additional details and/or updates.
Please ALWAYS credit the original author!