Estate Planning Intake Summary
After a prospective client returns the intake questionnaire and before the design meeting, when you need the whole picture on one page and a list of what is still missing.
Estate planning intake produces a lot of paper and very little structure. The questionnaire captures assets in one place, the family in another, and the client's real goals usually come out in conversation, not on the form. Before you can design anything, you need one clean picture: who is in the family, what the client owns, how each asset is titled, who is named on the beneficiary forms, and which facts change the plan.
This prompt takes the completed questionnaire and your consultation notes and turns them into an internal summary with a family tree, an asset table that tracks titling and beneficiary designations, the client's goals in their own words, and an issue list. It flags blended-family, minor or special-needs beneficiary, out-of-state property and incapacity issues, points out where the questionnaire and your notes disagree, and closes with plain-language follow-up questions you can send before the design meeting.
The summary is only as accurate as what the client told you, and clients routinely misremember how accounts are titled or who they named years ago. Treat every entry as a lead to confirm against statements and beneficiary forms. Plan design, tax analysis and any conclusion about state law remain your work, and the output is a draft for attorney review, not advice to the client.
The Prompt
I am an estate planning attorney preparing for a design meeting with a new client. Below are the client's completed intake questionnaire and my notes from the initial consultation. <document name="intake_questionnaire"> [PASTE COMPLETED INTAKE QUESTIONNAIRE] </document> <document name="consultation_notes"> [PASTE MEETING NOTES] </document> Client(s): [CLIENT NAME(S)] State of residence: [JURISDICTION] Other states where they own real estate: [STATES OR "NONE KNOWN"] Using only the documents above, prepare an internal intake summary with these sections: 1. Family tree: spouses or partners (current and former), children and stepchildren, grandchildren, and anyone else the client mentioned. Note ages, which marriage each child is from, and any minor, disabled or special-needs beneficiary. 2. Asset table with columns: Asset | Approximate value | How titled (individual, joint, tenancy type, entity, trust) | Beneficiary designation (if any) | Source (quote the questionnaire or notes). Write "not stated" rather than guessing. 3. Planning goals: the client's stated goals, quoted where possible, then any goals implied by the facts, labeled as inferred. 4. Issue list: flag anything that affects plan design, such as a blended family, minor or special-needs beneficiaries, out-of-state real estate, incapacity planning, business interests, prior estate planning documents, and assets likely to pass outside a will. For each issue, say why it matters in one sentence. 5. Gaps and conflicts: facts that are missing or that conflict between the questionnaire and the notes. 6. Follow-up questions for the client, grouped by topic and written in plain language. Do not recommend specific documents or tax strategies. This is a draft for my review, and any statement of [JURISDICTION] law should be marked for verification.
Example Output
A one-to-two page internal summary with a family tree, an asset table showing titling and beneficiary designations, quoted goals, a flagged issue list and grouped follow-up questions.
Illustrative example — names, figures, and facts are fictional.
ESTATE PLANNING INTAKE SUMMARY (DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW) Clients: Marcus and Elena Thornbury | Residence: [JURISDICTION] 1. FAMILY TREE Marcus (61), married to Elena (58) since 2014 (second marriage for both). Marcus's children from first marriage: Owen (33), Priya (29). Elena's child from prior marriage: Theo (17, minor). Joint children: none. Priya has a child, June (4). Note: Theo is a minor stepchild of Marcus; not adopted (notes: "never formally adopted"). 2. ASSET TABLE Asset | Value | Titling | Beneficiary | Source Residence, Elm Street | ~$640,000 | Joint, survivorship (per Q.12) | n/a | Questionnaire Q.12 Lake cabin, out of state | ~$210,000 | Marcus individually | n/a | Notes: "cabin is in my name only" Marcus 401(k) | ~$880,000 | Individual | "Probably still my ex-wife" | Notes Elena IRA | ~$95,000 | Individual | not stated | Q.18 Brokerage account | ~$300,000 | not stated | not stated | Q.20 3. GOALS Stated: "Make sure Elena is taken care of, but the kids from my first marriage get the cabin." (Marcus, notes) Inferred: provide for Theo while he is a minor. 4. ISSUES - Blended family: competing goals between surviving spouse and children from first marriage. - Possible outdated 401(k) designation naming former spouse; client has since remarried. Confirm plan terms and any federal spousal-consent rules [VERIFY]. - Out-of-state cabin titled individually: may require ancillary probate in that state [VERIFY]. - Minor beneficiary (Theo) and minor grandchild (June). - No incapacity documents mentioned. 5. GAPS AND CONFLICTS - Questionnaire says no prior wills; notes say Marcus "signed something in 2009." 6. FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS - Can you send the latest beneficiary form for the 401(k)? - Do you have a copy of the document you signed in 2009? - How is the brokerage account titled?
Tips
- •Paste the questionnaire and your notes as separate documents so Claude can flag where they conflict, which is often where the real planning issue sits.
- •Ask for the asset table to be sorted by how the asset passes at death (probate, beneficiary designation, survivorship, trust) to see the funding work early.
- •Keep the instruction not to recommend documents. You want an accurate fact picture first; plan design is your judgment call.
- •Remove Social Security numbers and account numbers before pasting. The summary does not need them.
- •Treat the output as a draft for attorney review and verify any state-law point or citation before relying on it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Claude replace my estate planning intake questionnaire?
No, it works on top of it. Keep using your own questionnaire and consultation process. The prompt turns the completed form and your notes into a structured summary, so you spend the design meeting on decisions instead of reconstructing facts. If your questionnaire changes, the prompt still works because it reads whatever you paste and reports missing items as gaps.
Why does the prompt tell Claude not to recommend documents?
Because the goal at intake is an accurate fact picture, and early recommendations tend to anchor the design before the facts are confirmed. Whether a client needs a revocable trust, a special-needs trust or a simpler plan depends on facts you have not verified yet and on your judgment. Run a separate prompt once the facts are settled if you want options to react to.
How should I handle sensitive financial data in the intake?
Strip account numbers, Social Security numbers and dates of birth you do not need before pasting. Approximate values and titling are enough for the summary. Follow ABA Model Rule 1.6 and your firm's AI policy on confidential information, use a plan with appropriate data protections, and consider whether client consent is warranted for your setup.
What if the client's answers about titling are wrong?
They often are, which is why the asset table quotes the source for every entry and marks unknowns as not stated. Treat the table as a list of items to confirm with deeds, account statements and beneficiary forms. The follow-up questions section is designed to collect exactly those documents before you finalize the plan.
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