Review an Existing Estate Plan and Send the Client an Update Letter

Inventory a client's existing will, trust and beneficiary designations, find where assets and fiduciaries no longer line up with the plan, and send a plain-English update letter.

The Workflow

1. 1

   Set the context and paste the plan documents

   Give Claude the family facts, what has changed since signing, and the review goal, then paste each document in its own labeled tags. Include amendments, codicils and beneficiary designation forms; a review that skips the beneficiary forms misses the assets most likely to pass outside the plan.

   PromptCopy

   I represent [CLIENT NAME, fictional or initials] in a review of their existing estate plan. I practice in [JURISDICTION]. The client signed the plan in [YEAR] in [STATE WHERE SIGNED]. Changes since signing: [e.g., divorce in 2022, birth of a grandchild, move to a new state, sale of business, death of named successor trustee]. Review goal: [e.g., identify needed updates before the client remarries].
   
   <document title="Last Will and Testament, dated [DATE]">
   [PASTE]
   </document>
   
   <document title="Revocable Trust Agreement, dated [DATE]">
   [PASTE]
   </document>
   
   <document title="Trust Amendment No. 1, dated [DATE]">
   [PASTE]
   </document>
   
   <document title="[OTHER PLAN DOCUMENTS, e.g., codicils, powers of attorney, health care directive], dated [DATE]">
   [PASTE]
   </document>
   
   <document title="Beneficiary designations">
   [PASTE EACH FORM OR CONFIRMATION, LABELED BY ACCOUNT]
   </document>
   
   First, list each document you received with its date and type, and flag any document the others reference (a pour-over will, a prior amendment, a schedule of trust assets, a power of attorney) that I did not include. Do not analyze yet.

   What you get: A document list and a note of anything referenced but missing, such as an earlier amendment or a trust asset schedule. Collect those from the client file before moving on.

2. 2

   Inventory fiduciaries, beneficiaries and dispositive provisions

   Have Claude build one table across all documents so you can see every appointment and gift in a single place, each tied to its article or section.

   PromptCopy

   Build an inventory table across all documents. Columns: Document | Role or provision | Person or entity named | Successors or alternates | Quoted language | Article/section.
   
   Include: executor/personal representative, trustee and successor trustees, guardian of minor children, agents under any power of attorney or health care directive I included, each specific gift, the residuary disposition, contingent beneficiaries, any trust for a minor or beneficiary with special needs, distribution standards, and any tax formula or marital/credit shelter provisions.
   
   Quote the operative language for each row. If a provision refers to a class (for example 'my children' or 'my descendants, per stirpes'), quote the class definition and say whether it would include people born or adopted after signing. If something is unclear or internally inconsistent, say so rather than resolving it.

   What you get: A single table of every appointment and gift with quotes and cites. Look first at successor fiduciaries and class gifts, since those are where life changes cause the most trouble.

3. 3

   Check beneficiary designations and funding against the plan

   Paste the client's current asset list with how each asset is titled and who is named as beneficiary. Claude compares it to the will and trust and flags assets that pass outside the plan or contradict it.

   PromptCopy

   Here is the client's current asset list with titling and beneficiary information as provided by the client:
   
   <document title="Client asset list, dated [DATE]">
   [PASTE: account or asset, approximate value, how titled, named beneficiaries or TOD/POD designations]
   </document>
   
   Compare this list with the will, trust and beneficiary forms. Produce a table: Asset | How it passes at death (will, trust, beneficiary designation, joint ownership, TOD/POD, unclear) | Whether that matches the plan's intent as stated in the documents | Issue | Source.
   
   Flag in particular: assets that pass by designation or joint ownership to someone the plan would not benefit; designations naming a former spouse, a deceased person or the estate; assets the trust appears intended to hold but that are titled in the client's individual name; and conflicts between the asset list and the beneficiary forms. Where the asset list and a form disagree, report both. Do not assume the asset list is complete.

   What you get: A per-asset table showing how each asset actually passes. Unfunded trust assets and stale beneficiary designations are the most common findings, and both are fixable during life.

4. 4

   List issues and update triggers for attorney evaluation

   Ask Claude to pull the findings into an issue list, tied to the life changes you described, with every legal question marked for you to verify under your state's law and current tax rules.

   PromptCopy

   Using the inventory and funding comparison, list issues and update triggers. For each: Issue | Why it matters given the changes I described | Source (quote and section) | Question for attorney, marked [VERIFY].
   
   Cover: fiduciaries who are deceased, divorced from the client, no longer suitable by the client's account, or now living out of state; gifts to people who have died; class gifts affected by new births or adoptions; provisions that refer to a former spouse; guardian appointments that no longer fit the family; references to statutes, account numbers or institutions that may be outdated; and tax formula clauses that depend on [APPLICABLE TAX RULE] thresholds.
   
   Do not state what [JURISDICTION] law does with divorce, lapse or out-of-state fiduciaries, and do not supply any current exemption or threshold amount. Phrase each as a question for me to check. Separately list information still needed from the client.

   What you get: A prioritized issue list with every legal point phrased as a [VERIFY] question, plus a list of facts to collect from the client. Research the [VERIFY] items before they go into the letter.

5. 5

   Draft the plain-English client letter

   Once you have confirmed the issues and decided on recommendations, have Claude draft a letter a non-lawyer can follow: what the plan does today, what you recommend changing, and what you need from the client.

   PromptCopy

   Draft a letter from me to the client. Audience: a non-lawyer. Use the issue list as I have edited it below, not the earlier version.
   
   <document title="Attorney-approved issues and recommendations">
   [PASTE YOUR EDITED LIST]
   </document>
   
   Structure: (1) a short opening explaining that we reviewed their plan and why; (2) 'What your plan does today', in plain English, covering who is in charge, who receives what, and who would care for minor children; (3) 'What we recommend updating', one short paragraph per recommendation explaining the reason in everyday terms; (4) 'What we need from you', as a checklist; (5) next steps and how to schedule a signing meeting.
   
   Avoid legal jargon or define it in one line when needed. Do not state any legal rule or tax figure that is not in my approved list. Keep it to about two pages. Close with [ATTORNEY NAME] and [FIRM NAME].

   What you get: A readable two-page letter built only from your approved recommendations. Edit for tone and confirm that nothing in it goes beyond what you verified.

6. 6

   Attorney review before sending

   Confirm every finding against the signed originals (not scanned copies of drafts), verify each [VERIFY] item under [JURISDICTION] law and current tax rules, and read the letter as the client will. The letter goes out under your signature.

   What you get: Findings checked against executed documents, legal questions answered by research, and a client letter that reflects your advice. Claude's work is the organized first draft; the recommendations are yours.

Example Output

Illustrative example — names, facts, and figures are fictional.

FUNDING AND DESIGNATION CHECK (ILLUSTRATIVE / FICTIONAL)
Client: Margaret Ellison. Plan signed 2017. Changes: divorce from Robert Ellison (2021); grandson born 2023; successor trustee Paul Ward died 2024.

Asset | How it passes | Matches plan intent? | Issue | Source
401(k), approx. $640,000 | Beneficiary designation: Robert Ellison | No | Designation names former spouse; plan leaves residue to the trust for the children | Plan administrator confirmation dated 2016; Trust Art. 5.1
Joint checking with daughter Claire | Joint ownership with right of survivorship | Unclear | Passes to Claire alone, outside the equal-shares plan | Client asset list
Brokerage account opened 2019 | Individual name, no TOD | No | Not titled to the trust; may require probate | Client asset list; Trust Schedule A (account not listed)
Home | Deed to trustee of the trust | Yes | None noted | Trust Schedule A

ISSUES FOR ATTORNEY EVALUATION
1. Successor trustee Paul Ward is deceased. Trust Art. 8.2 names "Paul Ward, and if he fails to serve, a trustee selected by a majority of my adult children." [VERIFY] whether the majority-selection mechanism is workable for this family or should be replaced.
2. Will Art. 3 names "my husband, Robert Ellison" as executor. [VERIFY] effect of the 2021 divorce on this appointment under [JURISDICTION] law.
3. Trust Art. 5.1 gift to "my grandchildren living at my death" would include the 2023 grandson. No change needed if intended; confirm with client.

INFORMATION NEEDED FROM CLIENT
- Current beneficiary forms for the life insurance policy
- Whether the joint account with Claire is for convenience only

DRAFT: for attorney review.

Tips

• •Always include beneficiary designations and an asset list. The will and trust only control what passes through them; retirement accounts, life insurance, joint accounts and TOD/POD accounts often hold most of a client's wealth and pass by contract or title.
• •Ask Claude to quote class-gift definitions. Whether 'my children' or 'my grandchildren' picks up later-born or adopted family members is a frequent source of unintended results, and the quote lets you answer it quickly.
• •Keep legal conclusions out of Claude's lane. The prompts tell it to phrase every rule-dependent point as a [VERIFY] question, which keeps outdated or out-of-state law from slipping into your advice.
• •Draft the client letter from your edited issue list, not from Claude's first pass. That keeps unverified points out of anything the client reads.
• •If you review plans regularly, keep the inventory and funding-check prompts in a Claude Project so each review starts with the same structure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Prompts used in this workflow

Related Reading

• Claude AI for Estate Planning: Trusts, Wills & Probate
• Turn a Dense Legal Document Into a Plain-English Client Explainer
• Estate Planning Practice