This is probably the most commonly asked question during the first five minutes of any initial conversation I have with a potential estate planning client. I believe it is a justified and important question to ask an attorney before deciding whether to work together. However, the question is both difficult to answer and that answer can be difficult to appreciate in those early stages. The reason it is difficult to answer is because five minutes is not near enough time to accurately determine the specific needs of a particular client that will need to be addressed in their estate plan. Everyone's estate plan is different, which means each plan will require a different amount of work relative to the drafting and implementation of the plan. This is the central reason that I am hesitant to answer this question with any specificity. It is not because I want to hold out on discussing fees, but rather I just simply do not know what that specific estate plan requires at that time. As my clients can attest, I always discuss fees during our first in-person meeting. In fact, I always provide at the very least a narrow fee quote range. In nearly all cases I quote a flat-fee that covers the comprehensive estate plan that I have recommended.
Therefore, in practice I cannot and typically do not directly answer this question because the answer would not be sufficiently accurate based on the limited amount of information I have at that time. I understand that some people do not like this answer and quite honestly I wish I did not have to give the typical lawyerly answer of "It Depends." But in most cases I do have to say "It Depends" because it is in the client's and, admittedly, my best interest to explore the situation in greater detail before we all commit to a fee schedule. I can assure you that the initial estate planning meeting is well worth the time and expense even if you do not ultimately decide to proceed after I make a recommendation and quote a fee. In the initial estate planning meeting I provide an overview of estate planning, which serves as both an opportunity to learn about the process and to get you thinking about how you would like to plan your estate.
