Artificial intelligence promises to make everything faster, cheaper, and more convenient — even estate planning. But when it comes to something as personal, complex, and state-specific as your Florida estate plan, trusting a robot to do a lawyer’s job is a recipe for disaster.

A recent study evaluated how four leading AI platforms answered 46 common estate planning questions — the same ones real clients ask every day. The results? Catastrophic. According to The Wealth Advisor’s article, “Understanding Opportunities And Risks That Come With Using AI Tools,” the most widely used AI system (ChatGPT) failed 61% of the time, giving up entirely after question 19. The remaining 28 questions went unanswered.

That’s not a glitch — that’s a warning.

Think of it like this: Googling your symptoms doesn’t make you a doctor. In the same way, using AI to “draft” your will doesn’t make you an estate planning expert. Florida estate planning attorneys are seeing a wave of clients walking in with AI-generated documents filled with nonsense: clauses that contradict themselves, references to outdated statutes, or language that would never hold up in a Florida probate court. What looks like “free legal advice” can quickly turn into a five-figure probate nightmare for your family.

The Human Judgment AI Can’t Replicate

Estate planning isn’t about filling in blanks:  it’s about human judgment.

A skilled attorney doesn’t just draft documents; they interpret your values, anticipate family conflict, and understand how laws evolve.

For example:

• A Power of Attorney might seem simple to AI. But only a Florida lawyer knows when it can — and can’t — authorize a charitable gift, sell real estate, or access a joint account.

• A Revocable Living Trust can sound identical from family to family. Yet a trust written for a Jupiter couple with a blended family and vacation property in the Keys will look radically different from one written for a Palm Beach retiree with out-of-state children and a taxable estate.

• A Digital Asset Plan might include your iCloud and social media accounts, but an AI bot won’t think to include your crypto keys or trading platform passwords; tools like the Welch Crypto Trust™ were designed precisely because AI isn’t capable of anticipating modern digital legacy needs.

AI doesn’t know how to look you in the eye and say, “That’s not what you really mean.”

It doesn’t catch emotional nuance. It doesn’t know that your son just remarried or that your daughter is struggling with addiction. It can’t read between the lines of your family story — and that’s where true estate planning lives.

Why Florida Law Makes AI Especially Dangerous

Florida’s estate laws are notoriously specific. A clause that’s perfectly legal in California might be void in Jupiter. Witness and notarization requirements, homestead restrictions, elective share rights, and trust accounting obligations are all dictated by Florida statute. AI platforms, trained on national data, often default to generalizations, missing the very details that determine whether your will stands or collapses in probate.

Imagine your will being thrown out because your AI “lawyer” forgot a second witness. That’s not hypothetical — that’s the kind of mistake that leaves families fighting in Palm Beach County probate court.

How AI Can Play a Supporting Role

To be fair, AI isn’t entirely useless. When used wisely,  under human supervision, it can be a helpful research assistant, not a replacement for expertise.

Platforms like Claude, ChatGPT, or Perplexity can help you:

• Learn basic estate planning terms (like “pour-over will” or “durable power of attorney”).

• Draft a list of questions to bring to your attorney.

• Organize preliminary information (such as asset lists or family trees).

In that sense, AI can help you walk into your first meeting better prepared — not better protected.

The Welch Law Difference

At Welch Law, PLLC, based in Jupiter, we’ve seen first-hand how DIY or AI-generated documents implode. We’ve unwound broken trusts, fixed defective wills, and re-established guardianships that never should’ve failed. The common thread? Clients tried to save money by letting a machine do what only a lawyer can.

Estate planning isn’t an algorithm. It’s a relationship  built on judgment, empathy, and experience. A good estate plan anticipates conflict, protects your legacy, and reflects your Florida life, not a generic data model.

So, before you let an AI tool write your will, remember: it doesn’t know you, your family, or Florida law. But we do.

By:  Edward J. Welch, Esq. ||| Estate Planning | Wills | Trusts | Asset Protection | Welch Crypto Trust™

If you would like to discuss your legacy options with an estate planning attorney in Jupiter or Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, schedule a complimentary call with Edward J. Welch at Welch Law, PLLC.  At Welch Law, WE WANT TO DRAFT YOUR LEGACY!

Reference: Wealth Advisor (September 23, 2025) “Understanding Opportunities And Risks That Come With Using AI Tools”