Should You Use Artificial Intelligence to Write Your Will?
“The better question is: Should you use it?” said estate attorney Vanessa L. Kanaga in an article in U.S. News & World Report. “At this stage of AI,” she adds, “I would not recommend to anyone to rely on AI for their will.”
Of course, estate attorneys and other paid professionals have a personal interest in advising against the use of AI for writing legal documents. But consumers naturally are attracted to the idea of using a free tool for something that would otherwise cost hundreds of dollars. So why not rely on AI to write your will? Here are some of the concerns Kanaga and others have:
- The will could be easily challenged. Heirs (or people who expected to be heirs but are not) may challenge a document that is not produced with an attorney. “[Writing a will] looks straightforward,” said Kanaga, “but you don’t necessarily know all the pitfalls that could lead to the will being invalid or challenged or not doing what you intended for it to do.”
- The wording may be ambiguous or wrong. “Let’s say an AI-generated will uses the term ‘heirs’ instead of ‘beneficiaries,’” wrote attorney Andrea Jakob in an article for Our City Media. “This misuse of legal terminology might lead to unintended consequences. For example, distant relatives or even creditors could potentially claim a share of the estate as ‘heirs.’”
- With AI, nothing is confidential. Professor Gerry Beyer of the Texas Tech University School of Law explained in a video for the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel: “When you enter information into the AI, all the prompts, all the family information you need, names, addresses, phone numbers, whatever you put in, it now becomes part of the [AI’s] database.” Further, he added, the AI can then use your info to “answer other people’s questions and draft their documents.” That’s how AIs learn and create content.
While AI technology is fun to use for a variety of everyday needs, having it write your will probably isn’t the best idea. The stakes are simply too high. When you’re gone, your will becomes the roadmap for your loved ones during what’s already an emotionally difficult time. Any ambiguity, legal misstep, or procedural error could cause a costly legal battle that drags on for years. Your final wishes might even be ignored because of technical problems with the document.
Look into state bar association resources
If you want to learn more about wills and estate plans in your state, find the website of your state’s bar association. It will have a section oriented to the public that includes helpful info about these and other topics. You may even be able to download related forms such as a durable power of attorney for health care or finances. (Those forms will need to be signed in the presence of a notary public to be considered legal.)
For now, at least, your last will and testament is one document that’s worth the human touch. Save the AI experiments for your grocery lists and thank-you notes—not for the legal document that will govern how your life’s work gets distributed to the people you care about most.
Sources
Can You Use AI to Write Your Will?
Can I Use a Computer or AI to Write My Will?
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Creating an Estate Plan