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The law is a very complicated subject. Many people forget this when it comes to legal forms. Specifically, there are a few things you need to know before going this route.

Be Careful When Using Free Legal Forms

What is the number one thing people hate about lawyers? Okay, it is a big list, but the cost of hiring one is certainly at the top. Depending on your location and the type of law involved, you can easily spend $100 to $700 an hour to retain the services of an attorney. This can seem a bit much when it comes to basic legal forms.

The beauty of the internet has to do with the large amount of information made available on it. Simply put, you can download just about anything including legal forms. The question, of course, is whether you are getting what you pay for? With legal forms, you have to be extremely careful not to hurt yourself in the long run by saving a few bucks up front.

The thing that many people misunderstand about the law is jurisdiction. While most think of the law as one set of rules that apply across the nation, it simply does not work this way. Yes, there is a set of federal law that applies everywhere. Most issues you deal with on a daily basis, however, are controlled by state law, not federal. This is where a problem can develop with downloading legal forms off the web.

State laws are created by state governments. The politicians comprising those governments are elected by the people of the relevant state. The views of those people differ significantly from state to state. California, for instance is a far more liberal state than Alabama. As a result, the laws on a particular legal subject are very different in each state. With legal forms, this creates a huge problem.

Legal forms off the web may comply with the laws of your state regarding whatever issue they cover. Than again, the forms may not. There is no way to write a legal form that covers the variations from one state to another. When you use these forms, you run the risk of relying upon something that is not valid in your state! This is the path to a legal disaster.

Can you use free legal forms to handle a need? Sure. You should only do so, however, if the forms indicate they are specifically tailored to the laws of your state. If they do not, using them could end up being a mess.