If I have a Will drawn up by an estate lawyer, can I change the will and file it myself in the county court?
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If I have a Will drawn up by an estate lawyer, can I change the will and file it myself in the county court?
It was drawn up by a lawyer who wants to charge $750 to make the changes but I only want 2 changes made?
Asked on February 27, 2017 under Estate Planning, Washington
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
When updating a Will you can either prepare and sign a new Will that revokes the earlier one, or you can prepare and sign a "codicil" to the earlier Will. A codicil is a separate document that amends an existing Will. For minor modificationss, a codicil will do but for more extensive changes drafting an new Will is preferable. Never try to change a Will by writing in its margins or crossing out words/lines. This can cause confusion and might result in your estate not being passed on as as per your wishes. Accordingly, you might just want to do a whole new Will. Since there are so many online sites that sell Will kits for reasonable amounts, you can do a new one yourself; you do not need to pay an attorney to do it.
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