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ssmacd
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BEST ANSWER  chosen by asker   |  ssmacd  |  January 04, 2009 04:32 PM
That's actually a great idea, as long as she's notified her family about it. The attorney generally has a safe to store the will, and will be prepared to get all the required paperwork in motion at the appropriate time.

If she holds it personally, or entrusts another family member with the task, its possible it may not be located easily when needed.

She should, of course, have a copy herself as well.

I'm assuming that your question was about the storage of the will--if you're concerned that he family attorney may not have the expertise, that's a separate issue. If your aunt's assets are simple, it should be fine. If she has a large or complicated estate she may want to consult an estate planning attorney.

For more information about wills, check out Mahalo's guide to How to Write a Will.

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ssmacd
ssmacd  |  January 04, 2009 10:46 PM
The fact that many family members don't get along with the attorney may or may not be important, depending on the family relationships. The attorney's job will be just to file the paperwork; he has no real power in the situation--that rests with the executor.
ssharon
0
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ssharon  |  January 04, 2009 05:05 PM
If your family doesn't get along well with the attorney when your aunt is alive, what do you think will happen once she passes?

Depending on the size and complexity of the estate you will have a lot of dealings with the attorney once she passes and if you don't like the attorney things will only be more painful. I don't see why you should interfere with your chosen method of grieving and remembrance by getting mad at the attorney. If you don't like him because you don't trust him this feeling will only get worse once your aunt passes.

In my personal opinion if you don't like the attorney because you don't trust him find another attorney to hold the will. If you don't like him for another reason just think about whether it will cause you more or less grief in the future when you need to deal with him and expect his condolences.
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krystyne20
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krystyne20  |  January 04, 2009 10:50 PM
When I worked in a law office that did wills, our office held the original in a Safe Deposit box, and a couple copies (or as many as they wanted) was given to the client. The copies had a label on them stating where the original will was being kept along with the attorney's name, address and phone number so they knew who to contact when the person died. So, yeah, it is a good idea for the attorney to hold the will since the attorney is an unbiased party who is not going to benefit from the will.
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