Estate Planning Short Course 2026 – Chicago, IL

1 General PR credit

Technical knowledge alone is not enough to build a thriving estate planning practice. Success also requires strong operational systems, clear client communication, and intentional business development. This session provides practical guidance on growing and managing a client centered estate planning practice, with a focus on streamlining client intake, managing expectations, and adopting effective business development strategies.

Hugh F. Drake, Brown, Hay & Stephens, LLP, Springfield

1 General PR credit

Estate planning attorneys frequently navigate complex ethical issues, particularly when representing fiduciaries, beneficiaries, and family members with overlapping interests. This session provides a focused discussion of conflicts of interest in estate planning matters, with special attention to the fiduciary exception and attorney client privilege considerations. Learn how to identify potential conflicts, avoid common pitfalls, and maintain compliance with ethical obligations.

Paige Goepfert, Andersen, Chicago
Lauren J. Wolven, ArentFox Schiff LLP, Chicago

This session provides a comprehensive introduction to the various types of special needs trusts, the Medicare-related issues that influence their structure and use, and key planning resources that support effective trust creation and administration.

Kit M. Adderholt, Sandberg Phoenix, Kansas City, MO
Lorraine K. Cavataio, Sandberg Phoenix, O’Fallon

This session addresses income tax challenges that arise in non-taxable estates and examines effective trust structuring strategies to navigate those issues.

Christopher Floss, ArentFox Schiff LLP, Lake Forest

Retirement assets present unique income tax and planning challenges in a post SECURE Act environment. This session explores drafting and administration strategies for naming trusts as retirement plan beneficiaries, including conduit and accumulation trusts, the 10-year rule, and planning considerations for eligible designated beneficiaries.

Aaron D. Evans, Sorling Northrup, Springfield
Julie S. Pleshivoy, Greenberg Traurig, LLP, Chicago

This review of recent significant trust and estate decisions, including Coffman, focuses on the practical lessons they offer. This session also examines common sources of disputes and identifies strategies to reduce litigation risk.

Patrick Bushell, Harrison LLP, Chicago
Samantha Weissbluth, Harrison LLP, Chicago

Selling discounted assets to an Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust can dramatically enhance wealth-transfer results for high-net-worth clients. This session highlights how valuation discounts, grantor trust rules, and interest rate planning work together to move appreciation out of the taxable estate while minimizing transfer tax exposure. Practical structuring tips and common pitfalls will be addressed to help practitioners confidently implement this powerful strategy.

Nina B. Stillman, Handler Law, LLP, Chicago

Learn how financial modeling can be used to quantify and illustrate the projected economic effects of an estate planning proposal on both intergenerational wealth transfer and the client’s retained assets. The materials address key wealth-shifting variables and the impact of grantor-paid income taxes (“burn”), using spreadsheet-based scenarios to compare outcomes. The objective is to provide decision-support analyses that align recommended planning strategies with the client’s needs and financial objectives.

Jerome M. Hesch, Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP, Boca Raton, FL

Seemingly routine boilerplate language can create unintended fiduciary exposure, administrative inefficiencies, or beneficiary disputes. This session examines those risks and offers practical guidance on counseling clients through fiduciary selections and distribution decisions to help ensure estate plans operate as intended.

Lucy D. Bickford, CIBC Private Wealth, Chicago

This session explores estate planning strategies tailored to the distinct challenges presented by second marriages, blended families, and today’s increasingly complex family dynamics.

Jennifer F. Kuzminski, Aronberg Goldgehn, Chicago

1.25 General PR credit

With AI tools increasingly available to clients, this session explores how estate planning attorneys can continue to add meaningful value in the age of artificial intelligence. The discussion surveys common AI estate planning products, identifies red flags and ethical pitfalls, and examines responsible uses of AI for drafting, document review, and summarization, while emphasizing best practices for protecting client confidentiality and data security.

Linda M. Strohschein, Strohschein Law Group, LLC, St. Charles