The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly impacted various industries, including the legal and financial sectors. AI-powered tools now assist in drafting legal documents, analysing case law, and automating routine tasks such as minute taking and letters.
In the fiduciary field and estate planning, AI can generate wills, trust deeds, and estate planning reports quickly and cost effectively (sometimes at no cost) and cheaper than the traditional fiduciary and legal services. However, while AI offers efficiency, relying on it without proper expertise in the field poses significant risks and can and will potentially prove very costly to clients, heirs and their families.
Fiduciary practitioners who use AI without fully understanding the legal implications of their work may expose clients to legal, financial, and ethical dangers. Here is why using AI without the correct legal oversight in estate planning is highly risky.
The law in this field is updated constantly with amendments to matrimonial property regimes, divorce legislation etcetera to name a few. AI may not always be updated with the most recent amendments.
The law also varies significantly across jurisdictions (local, offshore etcetera). What is legally valid in one country, state, or province may not meet the legal requirements in another. AI tools may not always account for these differences, leading to non-compliant or invalid wills and trust deeds. For example, some jurisdictions require wills to be witnessed by specific individuals or signed under specific formal conditions (the space after and before the end of the written will before signature is very important in South Africa). If an AI tool generates a will without considering these legal requirements, the document may be deemed invalid in court, resulting in invalid wills, legal disputes and unintended consequences and incorrect asset distribution.
Additionally, AI systems often rely on pre-existing legal data but do not interpret laws like trained legal professionals. Fiduciary practitioners relying on AI without legal expertise may unknowingly use outdated laws, jeopardising the enforceability of estate planning documents.
Estate planning is heavily influenced by evolving case law. Court rulings continually shape how wills, trusts, and fiduciary duties are interpreted and how the drafting of testamentary and trust documents evolve. AI models, unless specifically updated, may generate documents based on outdated precedents, failing to reflect the most recent legal decisions. An individual without legal expertise may be unaware of significant case law developments and could inadvertently produce documents that conflict with current judicial interpretations.
For example, if a recent court ruling establishes a new standard for trustee responsibilities or matrimonial rights, an AI tool that has not incorporated this ruling may generate trust documents or a will that does not align with the latest legal requirements. This could lead to legal challenges, causing delays, financial loss, and emotional distress for clients and beneficiaries.
Estate planning is also not a one-size-fits-all process. Each client’s situation is unique, involving complex financial, familial, and personal considerations. AI-generated documents often follow generic templates that fail to account for nuanced client needs. Without proper legal expertise, fiduciary practitioners may not recognise when an AI-generated document is insufficient or requires customisation.
For example, blended families, minor beneficiaries, business ownership, special needs dependents, and tax implications all require careful planning. A generic AI-generated will may not include provisions for a disabled beneficiary’s trust or may fail to address estate tax strategies that could save the estate significant sums. Without the ability to analyse and adapt AI-generated content, practitioners risk providing clients with inadequate or problematic documents.
Drafting of documents in this field requires precision to avoid ambiguities and misinterpretations. AI tools, while capable of generating legally sound language, do not possess human judgment to identify inconsistencies or potential points of dispute. Estate planning documents must be clear and precise to prevent litigation and ensure that a client’s wishes are carried out accurately.
For example, if an AI-generated will states, ‘I leave my estate equally to my children,’ but does not define what happens if one child predeceases the testator, this omission could lead to legal disputes among surviving heirs. A well-drafted will would include contingency clauses, specifying whether the deceased child’s share passes to their descendants or is redistributed among surviving children.
Furthermore, AI may generate contradictory clauses within a single document. Without legal expertise, practitioners using AI may not detect such errors, leading to confusion and potential court intervention.
Effective estate planning requires careful consideration of tax law, including estate duty/death duty, and capital gains tax. AI tools may not fully understand the tax implications of asset distribution, leading to unintended tax burdens for heirs.
For example, an AI-generated trust deed might not consider the impact of capital gains tax on asset transfer or fail to include provisions that minimise estate tax liability. A formally trained tax professional would assess these factors and implement tax-saving strategies, such as setting up charitable trusts or utilising tax exemptions. Fiduciary practitioners without this expertise using AI may unknowingly create estate plans that expose clients to unnecessary taxation.
Fiduciary practitioners are held to high ethical and professional standards. Clients trust them to act in their best interests and provide accurate, legally sound advice. Relying on AI without proper legal oversight could be considered negligence, particularly if the resulting documents lead to legal disputes or financial losses.
For example, if an AI-generated estate planning report contains incorrect legal advice, the fiduciary practitioner could face liability for professional misconduct. Clients who suffer financial harm due to faulty documents may seek legal action against the practitioner, leading to reputational damage and potential disciplinary consequences.
Additionally, AI lacks the ability to apply ethical considerations to estate planning. Certain decisions – such as disinheriting a family member or structuring a trust to prevent financial abuse – require human judgment and professional guidance. AI-generated documents cannot replace the ethical responsibility of fiduciary practitioners to advise clients appropriately.
Estate planning involves highly sensitive personal and financial information. When using AI tools, practitioners must consider data security risks. Many AI platforms store or process data in cloud-based environments, raising concerns about confidentiality and compliance with data protection laws.
If an AI tool is not compliant with privacy regulations (eg, Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013), clients’ sensitive information may be exposed to security breaches or unauthorised access. Fiduciary practitioners must ensure that any AI tool they use adheres to strict confidentiality standards to protect client data.
While AI can be a valuable tool for efficiency in many services in the fiduciary services and legal fields such as minute taking and letter drafting, it should never replace legal expertise. Fiduciary practitioners who rely on AI without a deep understanding of estate law, recent court cases, tax implications, and ethical considerations, put their clients at significant risk. AI-generated documents may be invalid, outdated, ambiguous, or legally deficient, leading to disputes, tax liabilities, and unintended asset distributions.
To protect clients and uphold professional integrity, estate planning should always involve human legal review. AI can assist with drafting and automation, but final documents must be scrutinised, customised, and approved by a qualified legal professional. By maintaining a balance between technological advancement and professional oversight, fiduciary practitioners can ensure that estate planning remains accurate, compliant, and in the best interests of their clients.
This is not to say that in the future it may change, as AI becomes more and more adaptive to everything and evolves, but at the moment it is not there yet.
Disclaimer: To be 100% clear and honest, I did use AI to dictate this article.
Chris Murphy FPSA® TEP BProc (Unisa) is a Director at Legacy Fiduciary Services Private Trust, FISA member and FISA Councillor in Cape Town.
This article was first published in De Rebus in 2025 (April) DR 7.
