“Just ask ChatGPT…”: Weighing the Risks of Letting AI Handle your Estate

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By Bethany Malik

Generative AI Overview

The newest version of artificial intelligence, Generative AI, burst onto the scene in 2022. An innovative leap in technology, like magic it could create new content like text, images, videos, and music.  Generative AI (GAI) could be utilized for something as simple as suggesting what to make for dinner or as complex as fueling groundbreaking antibiotic discoveries.  Presently, it is attracting use by lay people and legal professionals alike through platforms including Lexis AI, CoCounsel, and Lex Machina.  Recently, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics & Professional Responsibility published Formal Opinion 512, which focuses on using GAI in legal practice. It warns that “lawyers must be vigilant in complying with the Rules of Professional Conduct to ensure that lawyers are adhering to their ethical responsibilities and that clients are protected.”  This position is especially relevant in estate planning, where GAI is increasingly preferred in creating wills and estate plans over an estate planning professional. For everyday people, the risk of using GAI to create legal documents can result in creating a document that does not dispose of property in accordance with their wishes. For non-lawyers there are professional, ethical, and moral concerns. Thus, everyone should approach GAI with measured caution, approaching this new tool mindful of its many limitations and avoid over-reliance.

GAI Utilization in Estate Planning

By the general public

Everyday people are turning to GAI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini to quickly and efficiently explain legal terms, legal documents, and identify potential legal issues, often using them to simplify important clauses or break down legalese. For example, a chatbot app, rAInbow, helps potential victims of domestic abuse become aware of their rights.  Additionally, the website Do Not Pay overturned over 100,000 speeding tickets, saving low-income Americans millions of dollars. GAI has proven to be a useful resource and its reputation for doing things better than a human could do in a fraction of the time has led individuals to relying on open universe GAI platforms like ChatGPT to generate legal documents including wills and trusts. Their motives are not unfounded as GAI is an accessible, less intimidating alternative to consulting with a professional.  Equally critical, it is often more cost efficient than hiring an estate planning professional.

As AI becomes more integrated into daily routines, more individuals are turning to “do it yourself” estate planning through AI-assisted forms.  These are forms (sometimes called roboforms) that created by guiding a user through a series of probing questions.  These sites mimic how estate planners gather information for the purposes of drafting, however, they can fail to inform the user on the relevant law which could lead to the creation of unenforceable, invalid, or inaccurate documents. Further, GAI is ill-equipped and lacks the nuance to consider the complex circumstances or particularized situations that requires expertise because it only responds to the information provided by the user.

Unsurprisingly, litigation has resulted, for example, in Janson v. LegalZoom.com, Inc., LegalZoom offered blank legal forms where customers could print them and fill them out themselves. They also offered a service where their software could generate legal documents, through a questionnaire. Under applicable state law, businesses may not charge for legal document preparation services unless supervised by licensed attorneys. The court held that this went beyond providing the blank forms and amounted to document preparation with interaction from their employees. In another case, the North Carolina State Bar (NCSB), an agency responsible for the regulation of law practice and enforcement of laws proscribing unauthorized practice of laws, found LegalZoom violated the law by offering legal services in North Carolina. LegalZoom filed a complaint against the NCSB arguing that they had a right to provide its service in North Carolina.  The bar issued a counterclaim that this was an unauthorized practice of law, and the parties settled, agreeing that that LegalZoom’s actions did not constitute the practice of law under N.C.G.S. § 84-2.1. Therefore, LegalZoom is now limited to several restrictions within North Carolina.   

By legal professionals

Estate planning professionals on the other hand are leveraging GAI to streamline asset management, modify risk allocations, and generate financial projections for their clients.  Additionally, GAI is being used to automate administrative tasks such as scheduling reminders, managing meetings, and processing invoices.  More significantly, AI plays a crucial role in gathering information, researching statutory law, and organizing the data to develop and modify estate plans.  AI can quickly draft summaries, analyze information, and find relevant case law to support legal predictions, enhancing both efficiency and accuracy in estate planning.

Estate planners and estate planning law firms are also using AI to differentiate themselves from other firms and gain a competitive advantage.  In two recent studies, conducted among 750 current US law firm clients, “66% strongly prefer to work with firms that utilize the latest technology” and “70% of clients prefer working with firms using AI, seeing it as a path to better, faster services.”  As the utilization of AI grows, the billable-hour model may give way to a flat-rate billing structure that reflects that a predictable picture of the hours required to complete a matter. This would benefit the client by offering transparency but it would also provide clarity for the attorney. By leveraging AI, firms can offer more streamlined, accurate, and timely services, meeting the rising demand for effective estate planning solutions.

Primarily, GAI is used for estate document preparation. Tools like CoCounsel and Gavel can plug information given by the client into a template to create a draft of the desired document. Attorneys can then review and refine these documents to tailor it according to their clients’ unique objectives and circumstances. This allows documents to be created faster and with higher rate of accuracy, which significantly shortens processing time. Many estate planners now utilize these tools to automate the incorporation of client-specific information and boiler plate language, enabling attorneys to concentrate on the sections that require more complex and individualized drafting.

Pitfalls of AI

Pitfalls

Despite its many benefits, everyday people and estate planners should approach GAI with caution because it is simply not equipped to tackle personalized or complex tasks.  In nearly every instance where AI has been tested to generate simple wills and trusts, platforms like ChatGPT have been found to omit key elements, overlook critical provisions, or improperly structure documents.  For example, Wealth Counsel, conducted a case-study where they prompted ChatGPT to create a trust-based estate plan. The document appeared to be a legitimate legal instrument, utilizing legal terminology and addressing the prompt’s directives; however, it contained significant gaps, errors, and inaccuracies.  For those with limited access to estate planning professionals, these services can be a tempting alternative to ensure an end-of-life plan for a fraction of the cost, however, mistakes may be more costly than the resources required to hire an estate planning professional.

Moreover, estate planning relies on highly specific legal language, often rooted in archaic terms from Old French and English.  Generative AI, however, tends to oversimplify legal phrasing, failing to incorporate the precise “magic words” required to ensure legal validity.  As a result, AI-generated documents may not be what they claim to be, potentially leading to serious legal consequences.  Estate planners and those who use their services should heed the ABA’s warnings about the potentially misleading and harmful impact of AI-generated legal documents.  Legal needs are highly individualized, especially in estate planning, where no two cases are alike, and each client has distinct priorities.

One of the most concerning issues affecting legal professionals is the phenomenon of  AI “hallucinations,” where AI generates false or misleading information.  A notable example is the case of attorney Stephen Schwartz, who relied on ChatGPT to find caselaw and unknowingly submitted a trial brief with made up citations it in a trial brief. Consequently, his firm was sanctioned for $5,000.  While legal professionals can often recognize obvious mistakes or omissions, the inaccuracies that appear on the page can be just as problematic as missing information, posing serious risks to the integrity of legal work.

Lastly, data security is a significant concern faced by legal professionals. In a recent 2025 survey, “52% of clients have concerns about cybersecurity breaches, including 8% who have previously experienced at least one breach.”  Maintaining client trust amid the growing threat of data breaches, company leaks, and hackers is essential for success in the industry.  This risk is especially pronounced in estate planning where attorneys handle sensitive information related to finances, property, business, and family wealth.  While some platforms are “closed” meaning they can only use data within specific parameters without access to real time information, others are not making it imperative for professionals to uphold their ethical and legal duty to protect client data.

Conclusion

Generative AI is a catalytic tool that expands access to legal services and provides valuable support to legal professionals.  However, it is not without risks and thus should be used with caution, particularly in complex, highly personalized cases involving sensitive information.  AI’s speed, efficiency, and learning potential has secured its place within the legal profession and it would be futile to try and exclude AI from the practice. In fact, “a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology.” Lawyers should use GAI as another tool to advocate zealously for their clients. However, engaging with AI to assist with estate planning by lay people and legal professionals alike should be handled with judiciousness. Everyone should be wary of over-reliance on GAI platforms. Consulting an experienced estate planning attorney is always the safest way to ensure legal accuracy and compliance.