By the Templateez Team · Licensed Attorney (NJ & NY) · June 2026

Estate Planning Intake: The Complete Checklist for First Consultations

An estate planning consultation without a structured intake is a conversation without a compass. The client has assets, wishes, and fears. You have options, limitations, and deadlines. Without a form that maps one to the other, both of you leave the meeting with different understandings of what was discussed.

Family Structure

Start with the family tree: spouse or partner, children (including from prior relationships), grandchildren, parents, siblings. Note ages, health status, and any special needs. This is not just about beneficiaries. It determines whether the plan needs trust provisions for minors, special needs trusts, generation-skipping provisions, or protections for blended family dynamics.

Asset Inventory

You do not need a full financial statement at intake. You need the categories: real property, retirement accounts (IRA, 401k, pension), brokerage accounts, life insurance, business interests, bank accounts, and any assets with existing beneficiary designations. The point is to identify what needs to be in the plan and what passes outside of it.

Existing Documents

Does the client have a current will? A trust? A power of attorney? A healthcare directive? When were they last updated? The biggest intake failure in estate planning is assuming the client has nothing. Many clients have old documents from a prior attorney, a DIY service, or a different state that are technically still in effect but may be inconsistent with current wishes.

Client Goals

In the client's own words: who gets what, who is in charge, and what are they worried about? Common concerns include probate avoidance, tax minimization, protecting assets from creditors or divorce, providing for a special needs child, ensuring business continuity, and charitable giving. Our estate planning intake captures these in structured checkboxes and a narrative field.

Healthcare Decisions

Every estate planning intake should address healthcare directives: does the client want a living will? A healthcare proxy? Do they have strong feelings about end-of-life care? Who should make medical decisions if they cannot? This is often the most emotional part of the consultation, and having it on the form ensures it does not get skipped when time runs short.

The Questionnaire Difference

The companion client questionnaire is what the client fills out before the consultation. It captures their family, assets, and goals in their own words. When the client walks in with a completed questionnaire, you spend the consultation clarifying and advising instead of collecting basic facts. The consultation is more productive, the client feels heard, and the resulting plan reflects their actual wishes rather than what you remembered from a phone call.