Estate Planning & Probate

PRE-ORDER Comprehensive guide to retirement benefits under individual retirement accounts and tax-qualified plans.

As life “happens” to our aging clients, their needs can change in unimaginable ways. Sometimes, they need protection from bad actors. Sometimes, they unwittingly become a bad actor. Sometimes, they have caregiving needs at great expense. This session will cover the legal rules that you will face and the solutions you can offer when protecting clients in some of these circumstances.

Live Webcast Replay on Friday, April 29, 2022 from Noon to 1:00 PM
Originally part of the 64th Annual Estate Planning Short Course

You filed the petition, presented the medical report and got the guardian appointed. So, what’s next? The best way to make sure that things go smoothly in court for the duration of the guardianship is to do a good job educating the guardian. If the guardian understands the budgeting process, basic accounting principles and the role of the court, things are likely to go well. If they don’t, you can expect to be over budget and trying to explain how things went wrong to the judge. This presentation will review some common misunderstandings that guardians have about the process and discuss strategies to help the guardian stay on track.

Live Webcast Replay on Friday, April 22, 2022 from Noon to 1:00 PM
Originally part of the 17th Annual Elder Law Short Course

Essential reference tool for every contemporary estate planner’s practice.

A panel of judges discuss how to appear for court over Zoom, proper courtroom decorum, attire and presentation, and an explanation about local rules, standing orders, and how to properly complete an Order.

Insight on running for judge, elections, judicial appointments, and the associate judge process in Cook County.

After a year with the Biden-Harris Administration, what changes can we expect that will impact the financial implications of divorce – from changes in our federal tax structure to impacts on business and the value of closely held companies and the significant changes to Estate taxes.

Join the Legally Moms to explore medical, legal, and personal experiences with fertility issues. Targeted to inform our audience about family law and estate planning issues, as well as provide self-journeys from those who have been there. Our panel of experts includes attorneys who have insight from a practice perspective, doctors with two different specialties to provide medical perspective, and moms who have personal experience to provide insight about fertility.

Focus on drafting tax apportionment clauses and how the standard clause can have unintended consequences if not discussed with the client. We will review several examples to demonstrate how a standard apportionment clause, or a lack of any direction as to the payment of estate taxes, could impact the ultimate distributions under an estate plan.

This estate planning workshop will focus on preparing Wills for clients with challenging or interesting family dynamics. As the world has evolved and become more inclusive and fluid, so has the definition of “family” for many people. Therefore, drafting estate planning instruments for clients whose definition of family is one that is fluid and inclusive, or exclusive, is more important than ever. Estate planning attorneys have traditionally been accustomed to drafting provisions that exclude family members but doing so without caution may invite a successful probate challenge or worse. In this interactive workshop participants will learn: 1. Drafting for clients with chosen family, though their biological family members are alive, and no adoption ever took place 2. How to design provisions, including but not limited to guardianship, for Lawful Permanent Residents with primarily non-U.S. family but U.S. children 3. Crafting provisions that address disproportionate gifting and assist in avoiding probate and probate challenges