Written by Phoebe Stone, JD, MA (Bioethics)

In the United States, an enormous amount of wealth is held in retirement assets. In fact, as of September 2025, more than $48 trillion is held in retirement accounts, and retirement assets account for more than one-third of all household financial assets. Given these statistics, trusts and estates practitioners and other professionals must be prepared to advise and assist their clients in planning for their retirement savings accounts.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has taken a giant leap forward recently, bringing what seemed to be the future into the present. AI programs are already transforming businesses by producing automated responses to customers, marketing materials, emails, and virtual education programs. You may be wondering about the effects of programs like ChatGPT on the estate planning industry. Could your job eventually be replaced by a machine? We put this emerging intelligence to the test to see if an AI program could create an effective trust. Keep reading to see the results of this experiment.

Helping Clients Plan for Community Property in a Separate Property State 

If you are an estate planner, chances are you practice in a separate property (or common law) state. After all, there are only nine community property states. But that does not mean that community property will not appear on your radar.