Law Depot was formed in 2001 by lawyer Ken Sawyer, who wanted to bring cheaper legal documents to people across the United States and Canada. The company started by offering promissory notes (IOUs) and then expanded to its current position. Law Depot now offers over 150 legal documents that are accepted across all 50 states in the USA, and Canada. The company claims to have 10 million users and to have saved its clients more than $2billon in legal fees. With that in mind, it's a great choice for someone looking for the best online will maker.
Every document offered by Law Depot has been designed by a team, of qualified legal professionals. The last will and testament document is created via the same process as all of the company’s documents – by asking the user a series of questions and then producing a bespoke document based on these answers. Law Depot also has documents relating to power of attorney (handing over power of the user’s finances to a family member, for example), healthcare directives and documents that cover a whole host of end-of-life-related issues.
How much does Law Depot cost?
- Equivalent $7.99 monthly if prepay
- Per-document service available too
Law Depot offers a limited range of pricing options including yearly or monthly subscriptions, a pay-per-document option, and a seven-day free trial. It’s free to create and explore their online document selection. The annual pre-paid subscription of $95.88 works out at $7.99 per month and includes unlimited document creation and printing.
Alternatively, once you've completed your week long free trial, the license will renew at a cost of $33 per month and also includes unlimited document creation and printing. It can be cancelled at any time. Finally, there's a pay-per-document option which costs a flat rate of between $7.50 and $119. The pricing variation here depends on the document type and the length of time for which the user wants access to the document. All documents are stored in the cloud.
Law Depot review: Products
Law Depot is slightly different to some of the other will-preparation products on the market in that there’s no software to download. Users pay Law Depot a subscription to access the document-creation wizards and the documents themselves, and must keep up their subscription to retain access to them.
During the free seven-day trial (which just requires an email address and credit card details, though there will be no charges for this period), users can create, download and print as many documents as they need. Users can cancel at any time and there is no obligation. The other pricing options are outlined above.
Law Depot is really just one product – a subscription to a database that guides users through the document-creation process via a series of questions. The documents offers by Law Depot that are most pertinent to end-of-life issues and will-preparation are: Last Will and Testament, Health Care Directive, Medical Power of Attorney, Financial Power of Attorney and Living Will. All of these can be created, saved, downloaded and printed out without the aid of a legal professional. If properly completed, all of the forms are legally binding.
Law Depot also offers a satisfaction guarantee. If the customer isn't satisfied with their document, then they will be refunded within 50 days. In addition, Law Depot offers $10,000 to any customers that suffer damages from mistakes due to company errors on documents.
Law Depot review: Document creation
All of Law Depot’s documents are listed alphabetically, or can be searched by topic. To begin creating a document, it’s as easy as clicking on the document’s name and then just following the on-screen instructions. Documents can then be saved, downloaded, printed and signed.
Law Depot review: Client support
If a user has questions or needs assistance, they can contact Law Depot through email, the live online chat feature, the help centre, or the 855-number. Phone support is available Monday through Friday, 8am to 7pm ET, and can offer answers to many frequently asked questions.
Law Depot has a blog for users to educate themselves on topics such as real estate, business, personal, family and finance law. Law Depot’s online help explains each document and its importance, as well as which situations these specific kinds of documents are for. However, if you want the very best support, there are few online will creators that come close to the help and guidance offered by Quicken WillMaker & Trust.
Law Depot review: Usability
The document creation process for Law Depot is as easy as that of any comparable program, perhaps Rocket Lawyer apart. Firstly, all of the information entered is stored in the cloud, so there is no software to download and everything is accessible from any device with an internet connection. The document selection is grouped by subject matter and can also be arranged as one long alphabetical list, so it’s easy to locate the specific document the user needs. A simple click on the document name takes users into the creation process.
Users are first asked what state they live in, and then are presented with a series of questions. These are easily completed by either filling in the blank spaces, clicking a bubble, or by checking a box. The program then takes all of the answers and collates them into the appropriate portions of the document where users can then open, save, print, share, or edit the document.
There are a couple of tools missing that other products offer, such as spell-check, a checklist of what users might need (or have supplied) and worksheets, but overall it’s very straightforward and user friendly. Law Depot have an excellent standing with the Better Business Bureau, having been accredited since 2003 and currently boasting an excellent ‘A+’ rating.
Should you choose Law Depot?
Law Depot offers a great-value product for will preparation. There’s no software to buy and theoretically, users could complete and process their will within the free seven-day period. The annual, pre-paid subscription price - which works out at $7.99 a month - is among the cheapest on the market, though the $33 for month-by-month is less impressive. However, the interface is very user-friendly, offering very straightforward ways to create documents, and listing them in a very accessible way. The questioning process is smooth and without too many complications, and it should be a workable solution for most regular users creating a last will and testament, as well as any other end-of-life documents.
