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January 30, 2006
Contact: Mary Thuell at mthuell@halt.org or (202) 887-8255
Washington, DC - Do-It-Yourself Law: HALT's Guide to Self-Help Books, Kits & Software, a HALT Citizens Legal Manual, was released today. This unique guide reviews the most popular self-help legal products on the market and identifies the best and worst in eight legal areas including taxes, small business, family law and property law.
For many, the thought of handling legal matters without an attorney is intimidating. But a growing number of publishers offer carefully written and attorney-reviewed products that will help consumers do their own legal work at a fraction of the cost a lawyer would charge.
"The most useful and authoritative consumer guide to self-help legal resources," states Consumer Federation of America Executive Director Stephen Brobeck. "Everyone who wants to file their own divorce, plan their estate or set up a business should consult this unique reference book."
"HALT is committed to helping consumers find the best products on the market, and to defending Americans' rights to do their own legal work without always hiring a lawyer," said HALT Executive Director James C. Turner. "Do-It-Yourself Law is designed to help ordinary Americans exercise informed choice in their buying decisions."
In evaluating each product HALT looked at which offered the most up-to-date information, which are the most comprehensive and which are the easiest to use and why. Products were graded in six categories: accuracy, comprehensiveness, plain language, easy to use, red flags and quality of legal forms before being assigned a final overall grade, ranging from "HALT Do-It-Yourself Best Buy" to "Not Recommended."
Founded in 1978, HALT - An Organization of Americans for Legal Reform is a nonpartisan, nonprofit public interest organization. HALT pursues an aggressive education and advocacy program that challenges the legal establishment to improve access, increase accountability and reduce costs in the civil justice system. To see a sample chapter, visit: www.halt.org.
Do-It-Yourself Law: HALT's Guide to Self-Help Books, Kits & Software is 189 pages and sells for $16.95 which includes postage and handling. Send a check or money order to HALT at 1612 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006. To order by credit card, call toll free at 888-367-4258.
Here are some of HALT's "Do-It-Yourself Best Buy" suggestions from the latest edition of Do-It-Yourself Law: HALT's Guide to Self-Help Books, Kits & Software by James C. Turner, Theresa Meehan Rudy and Thomas M. Gordon.
For help filing your taxes - TurboTax Deluxe by Intuit (a comprehensive, state-of-the art, interactive software program that contains virtually every tax form and worksheet you'll need for preparing your federal and state tax returns.)
For help getting a divorce - Divorce Yourself: The National Divorce Kit by Nova Publishing (a plain language, step-by-step guide that helps you prepare a no-fault divorce agreement anywhere in the United States.)
For help writing your will - Quicken WillMaker Plus by Nolo (an incredibly powerful, comprehensive and easy-to-use software program that helps you produce a state specific, custom made will based on your answers to a number of questions. Also lets you create other estate planning documents.)
For help on a variety of legal issues - Home and Business Lawyer Deluxe by Broderbund (a sophisticated software program that offers a huge selection of forms, agreements, letters and notices for handling everything from requesting a birth certificate to writing your will.)
For help setting up a business - Quicken Legal Business Pro by Nolo (an encyclopedic, electronic reference guide that offers a wealth of information on small business ownership and over 140 forms, letters and checklists.)
To see the full list of "HALT Do-It-Yourself Best Buy" selections, please visit our Web site www.halt.org.
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