Estate Planning
How to Minimize the Chance a Beneficiary will Contest a Will
Posted on June 30, 2026
When a family has significant wealth, estate planning is often about managing relationships. Unfortunately, sometimes this involves managing conflict between family members as you anticipate future sources of conflict. In DuPage County, where high-asset estates are common and family dynamics can be complicated, a contested will can turn into a prolonged legal battle that drains assets and damages relationships further. If you have children who do not get along, a blended family, or concerns about how your heirs will behave after you pass, now is the time to take steps […]
Planning for the Cost of Long-Term Care for a Special Needs Child
Posted on June 15, 2026
Parents of children with significant disabilities face a major financial planning challenge. Raising a child who will need ongoing care for the rest of their life requires a plan that goes far beyond a standard will or trust. The decisions you make now will shape your child’s quality of life decades from now, including after you are no longer here to advocate for them. This makes it extremely important to get the details exactly right. If you are a parent in Illinois thinking seriously about a special needs trust for […]
Estate Planning that Anticipates the Medicaid Look-Back Period
Posted on May 24, 2026
Many families who have worked hard to build significant wealth assume they will simply pay for long-term care if the need arises later in life. However, nursing home care and advanced assisted living services can quickly burn through far more money than most people plan for. According to Genworth’s Cost of Care Survey, the national median cost of a private nursing home room now exceeds $100,000 per year in many parts of the country. For married couples, the cost of extended long-term care can greatly reduce assets that were meant […]
How to Manage as Someone’s New Guardian of the Estate
Posted on May 12, 2026
Being appointed guardian of the estate for a loved one is a serious responsibility. It means a court has decided that someone you care about is no longer able to manage their own financial affairs, and that you are the right person to do it for them. If you have recently been appointed to this role in Illinois, you may be feeling a mix of emotions. This might include concern for your loved one, a genuine desire to do the right thing, and perhaps some uncertainty about exactly what is […]
Elective Shares, Inheritance, and Wills in Illinois
Posted on April 21, 2026
Planning for what happens to your estate after you are gone is one of the most important things you can do for the people you love. Unfortunately, estate planning in Illinois involves legal rules that many people do not fully understand until it is too late to plan around them. One of the most significant and least discussed of these rules is the elective share, a legal protection that can override what a last will and testament says. In 2026, if you are creating or updating an estate plan in […]
Updating an Estate Plan After a Marriage, Divorce, or Death
Posted on April 9, 2026
Estate planning is all about providing a smooth, predictable transition when you or a loved one passes away. But before the event that would trigger an estate plan can happen, other major events can undermine or even nullify the estate plan’s objectives. A marriage, a divorce, or the death of a loved one can change your family in ways that your current estate plan is not built to handle. One of the most common situations that Illinois estate planning attorneys encounter is a client who created a solid plan years […]
WHY TAYLOR & TRAVIS SHOULD GET THEIR ESTATE PLANNING IN ORDER ASAP
Posted on April 1, 2026
The engagement that broke the internet: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s romance is a true American love story, and fans are waiting with bated breath to see what happens next. In addition to dominating in their professions, both Taylor and Travis consistently make clever business decisions, and to say they come to this marriage with a long list of assets would be an enormous understatement. But even the savviest, most high-achieving couples can benefit from one key move that often gets overlooked. Estate planning. You don’t need to be a […]
How Do You Prove Lack of Testamentary Capacity to Dispute a Will?
Posted on March 26, 2026
Most people assume that once a will has been signed and witnessed, it is the final word on how a person’s estate will be handled. In most cases, that is true. But a will can be challenged in court, and one of the most common grounds for doing so is lack of testamentary capacity. This means arguing that the person who made the will, called the testator, did not have the mental ability required by law to create a valid will at the time they signed it. These cases are […]
How Can You Use Charitable Bequests to Create a Legacy Through Your Estate Plan?
Posted on March 13, 2026
For many people, an estate plan is about more than passing assets to family members. For many people, a well-planned estate includes detailed instructions that leave something behind reflecting who you are, what you believed in, and what you wanted to see continue in the world after you are gone. A charitable bequest, such as a gift to a nonprofit, institution, or cause through your will or trust, is one of the most meaningful and flexible tools available to accomplish that goal. If you are thinking about charitable giving as […]
Protecting a Family Business from Federal and Illinois State Estate Tax Liability
Posted on February 26, 2026
A family business is often the most significant asset an owner will ever build. It represents decades of work, sacrifice, and reinvestment. Yet without careful planning, a large portion of that business could be lost to estate taxes when the owner dies. In 2026, family business owners in Illinois face a two-layer estate tax problem that demands close attention. Federal law and Illinois state law each impose their own estate taxes, with different exemption amounts, different rates, and different rules for married couples. Understanding how these two systems work is […]
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