Estate planning is easier to discuss when you begin with what you want understood, rather than requesting a document by name because it sounds familiar. You may be making arrangements for the first time, checking existing papers or responding to a change in your circumstances. A firm needs to understand that starting point before explaining the work it can undertake. This guide helps organise the enquiry without choosing legal documents or decisions on your behalf.
Bring questions before proposed solutions
Write a short private list of the decisions you want to discuss and the arrangements you already have. You can say that something has changed without placing family names, asset values or health information in a public search query. Ask the office what it needs for an initial discussion and how that information will be protected. Do not assume a familiar document title means the document is appropriate, current or effective in your circumstances; those are matters for qualified advice.
Separate the documents and their purposes
A will is only one part of estate planning. ASIC's Moneysmart resource explains that a plan can involve several documents and arrangements, with different functions. Use that overview to identify questions, not to assemble a do-it-yourself solution from a directory page. Ask the firm which matters it would examine and whether advice from another professional is needed. State and territory requirements can differ, so the office's address is not enough to establish the scope or jurisdiction of its work.
Pause & clarify
Before the brief goes further
Can this page tell me which estate-planning documents I need?
No. It helps you prepare an enquiry. The appropriate documents and arrangements depend on your circumstances and should be discussed with a qualified adviser.
Can I instruct a firm for a relative simply because I am helping?
Do not assume that you can. Tell the office your role and ask what authority and separate instructions it needs before proceeding.
Be clear about whose instructions are involved
If you are helping a relative or making an enquiry with another person, explain your role at the beginning. Ask whom the firm would represent and how it handles separate instructions, privacy and possible conflicts. Do not assume being present at a meeting gives you authority to make decisions for someone else. The directory cannot determine authority, capacity or family entitlements. The firm should explain its own intake process before you supply sensitive documents or expect it to act.
Understand completion and later review
Ask what completing the agreed work would involve, who will explain any signing or other formalities, and where final documents will be held. Clarify what is included in the quoted scope and how later changes would be handled. A prepared document and an up-to-date overall plan are not automatically the same thing. Keep a clear record of what the adviser has agreed to do, raise any timing concerns early and verify contact details independently. Find Law Firm does not draft documents or certify that an estate plan is complete.
Take to the conversation
Three questions for the practice
- Which existing arrangements would you review as part of this work?
- Whose instructions would the firm take, and how is privacy handled?
- What does completion include, and how are later changes managed?
Official background
ASIC Moneysmart: wills and powers of attorney ↗Checked 19 September 2026. The source has its own scope and jurisdiction; use it as background, not individual advice.
Preparation, not advice. These resources cannot assess your documents, rights or deadlines. Ask an appropriately qualified professional about your circumstances and verify the provider before sharing confidential information.