AI Tools & Tips for Fiduciaries & Estate Planning Attorneys

Resource Guide · Berk Law Group, P.C.

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Berk Law Group · Resource Guide · June 2026

AI Tools & Tips for Fiduciaries and Estate Planning Attorneys

A practical reference organized by topic, with tools, cautions, and quick-start guidance.

⚠ AI is moving fast. Verify tools and check your state bar guidelines before use.

⚠ AI Makes Mistakes AI does not understand context or nuance and makes mistakes. Do not put blind trust in anything AI produces. Read and verify everything.

Important Notice: This resource is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Always consult a licensed attorney before taking action. Tool recommendations reflect the authors' experience and do not constitute endorsements.

Jump to section

01 Privilege & Confidentiality 02 Clients Using AI 03 Pro Se Litigants 04 Writing 05 Document Review 06 Virtual Meetings 07 Fiduciary-Specific 08 Building Tools 09 Recent News 10 Contrary AI

Section 01

🔐 Privilege & Confidentiality When Using AI

Of all the AI issues facing lawyers and fiduciaries, confidentiality and attorney-client privilege carry the highest stakes. What you type into an AI tool — and which tool you choose — can determine whether your client's information stays protected or becomes discoverable.

🚨 The Core Risk Entering confidential client information into a public, consumer AI tool can break confidentiality, waive the attorney-client privilege, and forfeit work-product protection. Courts have found that material a client puts into a consumer AI tool may not be privileged — particularly where the platform's terms let it use, store, or share that data, and where no attorney directed the work. Treat every prompt as potentially discoverable unless you have confirmed otherwise.

Know the three protections — they are not the same

Confidentiality (ethical duty): You must protect all information relating to the representation. This duty is broader than privilege.
Attorney-client privilege (evidentiary): Protects confidential lawyer-client communications made for legal advice. Disclosing those communications to a third party, including an AI vendor that retains or trains on your data, can waive the privilege.
Work-product doctrine: Protects materials prepared in anticipation of litigation. Each state's rules vary.

✓ Protect privilege & confidentiality

Use enterprise or "zero data retention" AI tools backed by a signed business agreement / DPA
Confirm in writing that the vendor does not train on or retain your inputs
Redact or anonymize client identifiers before prompting whenever possible
Direct client AI use in writing so the work is done under your supervision
Add AI-use language to your engagement letter
Keep a record of which tool was used on sensitive matters
Review the vendor's privacy policy and security certifications (e.g., SOC 2)

✗ Risk waiver

Pasting names, account numbers, or case facts into a free consumer chatbot
Assuming "private" or "incognito" mode equals confidentiality — read the actual policy
Letting clients run their matter through public AI without guidance
Sharing AI transcripts or outputs outside the privileged circle
Relying on vendor marketing claims without verifying the contract terms

⚠ Check the Authoritative Guidance Bar associations have issued ethics guidance on a lawyer's obligations when using generative AI — competence, confidentiality, communication, fees, and supervision. Review the rules in every jurisdiction where you practice before adopting an AI tool, and re-check periodically — this area is changing quickly.

💡 Sample Engagement-Letter Language Practical client AI-use language for your engagement letter appears in the Dealing with Clients Using AI section below.

🏛 For Fiduciaries — Confidentiality Is a Duty Too Trustees, executors, conservators, and guardians hold highly sensitive information: beneficiary identities, account balances, and medical or capacity details. Putting that data into a consumer AI tool can breach fiduciary duties of confidentiality and prudence even where no attorney-client privilege exists. Use enterprise-grade, privacy-mode tools for anything involving trust or beneficiary data, and document your safeguards.

Ethics guidance

ABA Formal Opinion 512

The ABA's formal guidance on lawyers' ethical duties when using generative AI: confidentiality, competence, supervision, and fees.

americanbar.org No training on data

ChatGPT Enterprise

Business tier with SOC 2 compliance, encryption, and a commitment not to train on your business data.

openai.com/enterprise Data controls

Claude for Work / Enterprise

Team and enterprise plans with administrative controls and data-handling commitments suited to sensitive work.

claude.com Enterprise data protection

Microsoft 365 Copilot

Operates within your Microsoft 365 compliance boundary; prompts and responses are not used to train the underlying foundation models.

microsoft.com Fiduciary guidance

ACTEC: AI and Trust & Estate Law

Ethics and confidentiality resources tailored to trust and estate practitioners.

actec.org

Section 02

🤝 Dealing with Clients Using AI

Clients are arriving at your office having already "researched" their estate plan with ChatGPT. This creates both opportunities and real legal risks you need to manage proactively.

🔑 Privilege Alert Public, consumer AI tools can strip away both confidentiality and the attorney-client privilege — see Section 01 — Privilege & Confidentiality for the details and the governing case law. For client-facing work the takeaway is simple: update your engagement letters and steer clients away from free AI tools for anything touching their matter.

Update your engagement letter: Add language advising clients not to input confidential information into public AI platforms without your explicit, written direction.
Educate and communicate: Many clients simply don't know the difference between a paid/secure tier AI platform and a free/open one. Clients also don't know the rules about privilege and confidentiality.
Address AI research clients bring: Validate what's right, correct what's wrong, and reinforce the value of your legal judgment tailored to their specific situation.
The "AI said so" conversation: When a client says "ChatGPT told me I don't need a trust," treat it as a teaching moment. AI doesn't know their state law, family dynamics, or tax picture.
Directed AI use can protect privilege: If you instruct a client in writing to use AI for a specific task, this may help preserve privilege on those materials.
Deepfakes and identity: ACTEC has flagged emerging issues with fabricated signatures and voice cloning in estate planning. Consider how you verify client identity in remote meetings.

💡 Sample Engagement Letter Language (Starting Point — Have Counsel Review)

"Client shall not input, upload, or disclose any information relating to this representation, including communications, documents, facts, or legal strategy, into any artificial intelligence platform unless it is a secure, paid, and password-protected account that is not used to train the model. Client understands that many publicly accessible or free AI platforms are not confidential and may retain, use, or share submitted information.

Client acknowledges that unauthorized disclosure of information through artificial intelligence tools, or use of unapproved or unsecured platforms, may waive attorney-client privilege, work product protection, and other confidentiality protections, and may create discoverable evidence. The Firm is not responsible for any consequences arising from Client's unauthorized or noncompliant use of such platforms, including any resulting legal or strategic harm.

Client agrees not to rely on or substitute AI-generated content for factual information or legal advice in connection with this matter. As such, Client agrees to carefully read and ensure the accuracy of any information provided to the Firm, regardless of whether AI assisted in preparing it.

The Firm may, in its discretion, use AI-assisted tools in a manner consistent with its professional and ethical obligations, including confidentiality, competence, and attorney supervision."

BLG Free Tool

BLG AI Client Tip Sheet

Using AI Correctly in the Attorney-Client Relationship — generates personalized guidance on preserving privilege and confidentiality.

berklawgroup.com/tools/ai-client-tipsheet ACTEC

ACTEC AI Resources for Estate Attorneys

Podcasts and videos covering client-facing AI risks, deepfakes, and fiduciary obligations. Updated 2026.

actec.org

Section 03

⚖ Dealing with Self-Represented Parties Using AI

Self-represented litigants with AI access are appearing in courts with voluminous, authoritative-sounding filings that may contain fabricated citations or fundamentally flawed legal reasoning.

🚨 What Attorneys Are Seeing Attorneys report pro se litigants filing lengthy AI-generated pleadings, motions, and other documents. Filings "look legitimate on first glance" but contain invented case law. Courts are responding with new rules and sanctions, but the volume problem is ongoing.

Spot AI-generated filings: Look for unusually long filings with fluent but imprecise language, generic boilerplate, and citations that don't hold up when verified.
Verify every citation and holding: AI frequently fabricates case citations, holdings, and arguments that sound real. Read every authority. Run every citation and proposition through Westlaw, Lexis, or Google Scholar before relying on it.
Courts are responding: A growing number of courts now require filers to certify that all cited authorities exist and are accurate. More are expected to follow.
Pro se held to same standard: Courts have been clear: pro se litigants cannot use AI as an excuse for fabricated authority. Sanctions have been applied.
Use AI to respond: You can use AI to quickly summarize a voluminous pro se filing. Ask it to "identify the key legal claims and flag any citations that seem unusual."
Document review time: Track your time reviewing AI-generated filings carefully for fee purposes. Some courts are becoming receptive to sanctions motions in these cases.

Free

Google Scholar

Free case law verification. Paste a citation — if it doesn't appear here, it likely doesn't exist.

scholar.google.com Free

CourtListener

Free access to federal court opinions and filings. Useful for quickly verifying whether a cited case is real.

courtlistener.com Subscription

Westlaw

Gold standard for citation verification. Includes AI-enhanced research with built-in citation validation.

westlaw.com Subscription

Lexis+

AI-assisted legal research with built-in citation validation (Shepard's) to confirm authorities exist and are good law.

lexisnexis.com

Section 04

✍ Writing as a Collaboration Tool

AI works best as a drafting partner — a very fast first draft that you always review, refine, and own. Think of it as a brilliant but inexperienced associate who needs your sign-off before anything goes out.

✓ Good uses for AI writing

Client emails and follow-up letters
Beneficiary notices and distribution letters
First drafts of marketing copy and bios
Routine motions and boilerplate language
Rewriting dense legal language into plain English
Social media posts and newsletter content
Meeting agendas and internal memos
Trustee reports

✗ Do NOT rely on AI to write

Final legal filings without independent verification
Case citations — always verify every citation, analysis, and holding
Tax calculations or specific legal determinations
Anything sent as-is without your review and approval
Content with confidential client data in public AI tools

💡 Prompt Tip The more context you give, the better the output. Try: "Draft a letter for a trustee explaining a delayed distribution due to pending probate. The beneficiary is not legally sophisticated. Warm but professional tone. Under 200 words."

🔒 Data Security Reminder Never paste confidential client information into a public AI tool without understanding the platform's data policy — doing so can forfeit confidentiality and the attorney-client privilege (see Section 01 — Privilege & Confidentiality). Use enterprise or privacy-mode versions for sensitive work.

Free tier

Claude (Anthropic)

Strong for nuanced drafting, long documents, and plain-language client letters. Excellent for complex reasoning tasks.

claude.ai Free tier

ChatGPT (OpenAI)

Quick drafts, marketing copy, and email replies. Widely used starting point with free and paid tiers.

chatgpt.com Microsoft 365

Microsoft Copilot

Embedded in Word and Outlook. Easiest entry point if your firm already uses Microsoft 365.

copilot.microsoft.com Legal-specific

Spellbook

Works inside Microsoft Word. Built for contract drafting and estate planning document review.

spellbook.com Enterprise

Harvey AI

Legal-trained AI used by major law firms. Includes no-code workflow automation for high-volume practices.

harvey.ai Practice Mgmt

Clio Duo

AI built into Clio's practice management platform. Helps with intake, billing, deadlines, and drafting within case files.

clio.com

Section 05

📄 Document Review & Summarization

AI can read and synthesize long documents in seconds — a genuine time-saver for reviewing trusts, wills, accountings, and complex client files.

Summarize a trust: Upload a PDF and ask "List the key provisions, named trustees, beneficiaries, and any unusual clauses."
Compare drafts: Paste two versions and ask "What changed between these two drafts?"
Build a timeline: Give AI a set of dated documents and ask it to create a chronological administration timeline.
Client-ready summaries: Ask AI to rewrite a complex trust summary in plain language for a non-legal audience.
Spot inconsistencies: Ask AI to "flag any clauses that conflict with each other or with the stated tax objectives."

💡 Quick Win to Try Today Take any trust document on your desk, upload it to Claude at claude.ai, and ask: "Summarize the key parties, distribution scheme, and any notable tax provisions in plain language." You'll have a client-ready summary in under a minute. Always review it before using it.

Estate planning

Vanilla (V/AI)

Uploads trust documents and produces structured estate summaries with planning opportunities highlighted.

justvanilla.com Financial + Legal

FP Alpha

Reads and summarizes estate documents, tax returns, and insurance policies. Integrates with major CRMs.

fpalpha.com In Microsoft Word

Spellbook

Review and redline estate documents directly in Word. Flags risky or missing clauses automatically.

spellbook.com Legal research

CoCounsel (Thomson Reuters)

AI backed by Westlaw content. Strong for document review, research, and citation-verified analysis.

casetext.com

Section 06

🎙 AI in Virtual Meetings

AI note-takers can transcribe Zoom and Teams calls, generate action items, and let you be fully present in the conversation — no frantic note-taking required.

⚠ Consent Matters — A Lot Always inform all participants before recording with an AI tool. Lawsuits have raised biometric-privacy claims when AI captured participants' voiceprints without consent. Get verbal confirmation at the start of any recorded call and consider addressing AI recording in your engagement letter.

Before the meeting: Inform all attendees that AI transcription will be active. Get verbal confirmation.
During: Speak clearly and use full names when referencing parties — transcription accuracy depends on context.
After: Review the AI summary before sharing. AI can misattribute quotes in complex legal discussions.
Storage: Know where transcripts live and who can access them. Check your state's data retention rules for client communications.

SOC 2 / HIPAA

Fellow

A strong option for Teams. SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA compliant and, per the vendor, does not train AI on customer data. Works across Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet.

fellow.ai Free tier

Fathom

Generous free plan. Auto-joins Zoom, highlights key moments, and drops summaries into Slack or email after the call.

fathom.video 40+ platforms

Fireflies.ai

Strong archive search across 100+ languages. Review biometric-privacy consent requirements before enabling speaker recognition features.

fireflies.ai Microsoft 365

Microsoft Copilot in Teams

Native Teams integration with built-in transcription and summaries. Best within the Microsoft ecosystem.

microsoft.com

Section 07

🏛 AI for Fiduciaries — Specific Considerations

Trustees, executors, conservators, and guardians have distinct responsibilities that create both unique opportunities and important risks when using AI.

⚠ The Core Fiduciary Principle Does Not Change AI is a tool — your duty of loyalty, prudence, and impartiality still rests entirely with you. You cannot delegate fiduciary judgment to an algorithm, and "the AI told me to" is not a defense to a breach of duty claim. Document your reasoning. Review every AI output before acting on it.

✓ Strong uses for fiduciaries

Drafting beneficiary notice and distribution letters
Summarizing trust documents for co-trustees
Generating first drafts of creditor notices
Plain-language explanations of trust provisions
Organizing and summarizing asset inventories
Building deadline trackers and checklists
Drafting trustee meeting agendas
Responding to beneficiary inquiries

✗ Do NOT rely on AI for

Legal advice — AI is not a lawyer and gets things wrong
Document review or summaries without actually reviewing the documents
Final fiduciary accounting figures — verify every number
Tax determinations or principal/income allocations
Investment decisions without human oversight
Distribution decisions without reviewing the trust instrument
Interpreting ambiguous trust language
Any decision requiring independent fiduciary judgment

Trust Administration & Accounting

Categorizing transactions: AI can classify trust transactions as a first pass — but a qualified accountant or attorney should verify allocations, especially for municipal bonds, partnership distributions, and foreign securities.
Reconciling accounts: Tools like Excel Copilot or Claude can help spot discrepancies: "Find line items where the bank statement total doesn't match the ledger."
Generating periodic reports: AI can help structure the narrative portion of trustee reports — describing activity, investment performance context, and upcoming decisions.
Timeline creation: Upload dated documents and ask AI to create a chronological administration timeline — useful for trustee handoffs or engaging new counsel.

Beneficiary Communications

Plain-language letters: AI is excellent at translating complex trust decisions into clear, respectful prose for beneficiaries who aren't financially sophisticated.
Tone calibration: Ask AI to "rewrite this distribution denial letter in a warm but professional tone for a beneficiary who may be upset."
Dispute de-escalation: AI can help draft factual, well-organized responses to beneficiary challenges without the emotional charge.

💡 Try This Prompt "I am the trustee of a discretionary trust. A beneficiary has requested a $25,000 distribution for a home purchase. The trust allows distributions for health, education, maintenance, and support. I am inclined to approve $15,000. Draft a letter explaining this decision in plain language, in a warm and respectful tone, for a beneficiary who is not legally sophisticated."

Fiduciary Duty Considerations

You remain fully responsible: Fiduciaries cannot outsource judgment to AI. The duty of prudence requires that you understand and can explain every decision you make.
Document your process: When AI informs a decision, note it in your records along with how you reviewed and verified the output. A well-documented process is your protection against breach of duty claims.
Investment decisions: The SEC has flagged AI use in portfolio management as an examination priority. Regulators will look at whether oversight is substantive, not merely formal.
Data security: Trust documents and beneficiary information are highly sensitive. Use enterprise or privacy-mode AI tools — not free consumer versions — for anything involving trust data.
Transparency: Consider whether and how to disclose AI tool use to beneficiaries, especially in corporate trustee contexts.

ACTEC

ACTEC AI Resources

Best single resource for fiduciaries and estate attorneys. Covers AI in trust administration, deepfakes, and fiduciary obligations.

actec.org Estate visualization

Vanilla (V/AI)

Uploads trust documents and produces visual estate summaries — flowcharts, beneficiary summaries, and balance sheet reports.

justvanilla.com Estate administration

Estateably

Auto-fills 1,000+ jurisdiction-specific probate forms. Used by 1,000+ firms across the US and Canada.

estateably.com Analysis (2026)

The Fiduciary in the Machine

Thoughtful analysis of how AI-as-agent challenges traditional fiduciary duty frameworks. Important reading for any fiduciary using AI.

zwillgen.com

Section 08

🔧 Building Tools & Apps

You don't need to be a developer to build useful tools. AI can create intake forms, checklists, deadline trackers, and custom workflows using plain-language instructions.

💡 Start Small — Try This Now Ask Claude: "Build a simple HTML checklist for a first meeting with an estate planning client." You'll have something usable in under two minutes — no coding, no setup, no cost.

No code

Claude

Build interactive checklists, questionnaires, and calculators in conversation. Exports as usable HTML. No setup required.

claude.ai No code

ChatGPT Custom GPTs

Build a custom chatbot trained on your own documents to answer FAQs or guide clients through intake.

chatgpt.com Microsoft 365

Power Automate + Copilot

Describe a workflow in plain English and Copilot builds it. Connects email, calendars, document libraries, and client systems.

powerautomate.microsoft.com Document automation

Gavel

Clients answer a questionnaire; Gavel populates your templates. Major time-saver for estate planning document preparation.

gavel.io Automation

Zapier

Connect your apps without code: "When a client signs in Clio, create a folder and send a welcome email." No coding required.

zapier.com

Section 09

📰 Recent AI News You Should Know

The legal landscape around AI is shifting quickly. These are the most relevant recent developments for fiduciaries and estate attorneys as of June 2026.

2026A court ruled consumer AI use can waive attorney-client privilege

1,000+court rulings worldwide have flagged AI hallucinations (2026)

Bar guidanceState bars have issued ethics rules on lawyers' AI use

Consumer AI and privilege: A federal court ruled that documents a client created in a consumer AI tool were NOT protected by attorney-client privilege; the platform's privacy policy eliminated any expectation of confidentiality. Update your engagement letters.
Court rules on AI citations: A growing number of judges have issued standing orders requiring filers to certify that any AI-assisted work was checked by a human, and several state bars have issued AI ethics guidance. Verify the specific rules in your jurisdiction.
AI hallucinations in court: Multiple courts have sanctioned attorneys for filing briefs with AI-fabricated citations. Public trackers have counted more than 1,000 such court decisions worldwide as of 2026.
AI meeting tools and biometric law: Class-action lawsuits have raised claims over AI voiceprint capture without consent — an active issue for any attorney using AI transcription tools.
ACTEC resources: The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel has published updated AI guidance for estate practitioners (2026). Highly recommended reading.

ACTEC

ACTEC: AI and Trust & Estate Law

Podcasts, videos, and resources for estate attorneys on AI use, ethics, deepfakes, and emerging issues. Updated 2026.

actec.org Thomson Reuters

AI in Courts — Thomson Reuters Institute

Ongoing reporting on AI's impact in courts, hallucinations, self-represented litigants, and evolving court rules.

thomsonreuters.com Legal blog

Workplace Privacy Report

Tracks AI-related legal developments: privilege issues, biometric privacy, and court rules. Free newsletter available.

workplaceprivacyreport.com

Section 10

🌱 Contrary AI — The Environmental Side

AI has real environmental costs worth understanding, and there are practical ways to use it more thoughtfully.

~415 TWhGlobal data-centre electricity in 2024, ~1.5% of supply (IEA)

~945 TWhProjected data-centre electricity by 2030 (IEA)

Several×Energy per AI query vs. a web search (estimates vary widely; ~10× is debated)

Energy use: The IEA estimates data centres used about 415 TWh of electricity in 2024 (~1.5% of global supply), projected to more than double to ~945 TWh by 2030. Per-query estimates vary widely, but an AI query is often cited as using several times the energy of a standard web search (the ~10× figure is debated).
Water: Data centers use significant water for cooling. Training large AI models requires enormous amounts of both energy and water.
What companies are doing: Google, Microsoft, and Amazon have pledged carbon-free energy targets and are investing in large-scale renewable projects.
Potential upside: A 2025 study by the LSE Grantham Research Institute and Systemiq (npj Climate Action) estimated AI could reduce global emissions by 3.2–5.4 billion tonnes of CO₂e annually by 2035 if applied to power, transport, and food.
What you can do: Use AI purposefully. Write clear prompts that get results in one shot — saving energy, time, and frustration. Reuse outputs rather than regenerating.

Questions about AI, privilege, or a fiduciary matter?

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