Estate Planning

Each state in the country sets its own intestate succession laws. These laws determine who is going to get the estate of a person if that person passes away without a will in place. They are very strict and can’t be bypassed unless you have your estate plan set up...

Americans often feel like financial details are very private and personal. They don’t like to talk about them, even with members of their own family. This extends to estate planning.  While just how much you tell anyone is up to you, of course, there are actually some...

Putting off the creation of a last will is a very common behavior, and most people don't want to really think about their own death. Many people will choose to wait until they're ready to retire or even later in life before they sit down to create an estate plan. ...

Not exactly. The difference between a beneficiary and an heir is something that confuses a lot of people, so if you don’t know the difference, you’re definitely not alone. Your heirs are anyone who could potentially receive an inheritance from you after your death. If...

If you’re a parent of minor children, you shouldn’t delay in naming a guardian for your youngsters. Knowing that they will be well cared for in the event of your death would be a great comfort to you. But maybe you’ve hesitated to create your will and execute the...

Unexpected health issues may become more common as you grow older. You can’t predict when these issues may strike or exactly what challenges you will face, but we do know that aging takes a toll and that some issues -- cancer, strokes, etc -- are more common in the...

According to some statistics, fewer than 1 out of 3 family-owned businesses actually make a successful transition in ownership from one generation to the next. The prospects of a family-owned business making it down to the fourth generation or further are quite slim,...

Previous posts on this blog have discussed how our law office can help clients in the Chicago area plan to pass their wealth down to the next generation. Indeed, careful estate planning can ensure that a family receives their loved one's property with as little...

A power of appointment is an estate planning device, used in a will, with which many people in the greater Chicago area may not be familiar. Basically, a power of appointment confers on another person the ability to give to a third party some portion of a decedent's...

When people think of setting up a limited liability corporation, or LLC, it is usually for business reasons. For example, a businessperson may like the idea of having some degree of legal protection like what an LLC offers. Moreover, an LLC also offers important tax...