I Knew You Were Trouble When You Walked In: T&E Monthly Q&ABy Melissa A. GrisoniTrusts and Estates, May 2025The ISBA Trusts & Estates Section Subcommittee on Lawyers Who Are New to Trusts & Estates held its monthly "T&E Q&A: The Basics and Beyond" Zoom meeting on May 15, 2025. This month’s insightful meeting tackled a challenge every attorney inevitably faces: the "toxic client." Moderated by the knowledgeable Mary Vanek of Matlin Law in Northbrook, co-chair of the subcommittee and a 37-year veteran of T&E law, the session provided invaluable guidance from a panel of experienced practitioners.
Is There a Duty to Assess a Client’s Capacity to Execute Estate Planning Documents?By Gary R. GehlbachTrusts and Estates, May 2025To what extent, if at all, does an attorney have a duty to determine if a client has sufficient capacity to execute a last will and testament or other estate planning documents? Noting “that there is no Illinois law directly on the subject,” a recent First District Illinois Appellate Court decision characterizing this issue as a “case of first impression,” rejected plaintiff’s argument that “an affirmative duty [exists] to determine a client’s competence.” However, if the attorney is put on notice of a client’s disability, the attorney is “obligated to determine the extent of that disability with respect to [the client’s] capacity to alter her estate plan.”
ISBA Trusts & Estates Section Offers Valuable Q&A Series for Attorneys New to T&EBy Melissa A. GrisoniTrusts and Estates, April 2025Since November 2024, the ISBA Trusts & Estates Section's Subcommittee on Lawyers Who Are New to Estate Planning has successfully hosted a monthly Zoom meeting, "T&E Q&A: The Basics and Beyond." These sessions are held on the third Thursday of each month. Designed as an informal forum, the Q&A meetings provide an invaluable opportunity for attorneys new to the practice of estate planning to pose questions to experienced colleagues. ISBA members can submit questions in advance or via the chat function during the live meeting, with a panel of three to four seasoned practitioners offering their insights. The subcommittee has received overwhelmingly positive feedback and intends to continue these popular sessions, with a brief recess planned for the summer months.
Mortgagees Can’t Get No SatisfactionBy Sherwin D. AbramsTrusts and Estates, April 2025Illinois courts have extinguished mortgages because the mortgagor died. Does the Probate Act really permit that? Would SB2221 prevent it from happening again? Is further legislation desirable? This article discusses those cases in which courts extinguished mortgages and explains why the author believes that those cases were wrongly decided. Also, this article explains how SB2221 seeks to change the results in those cases and proposes further legislative improvements.
Purchasing vs. Gifting a Policy: The 3-Year RuleBy Tony McKillipTrusts and Estates, April 2025The IRS's three-year look back policy, commonly known as the three-year rule, poses a significant challenge for those looking to transfer existing life insurance policies to an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT). Under this rule, if an insured individual transfers a policy to an ILIT and passes away within three years of the transfer, the entire policy proceeds are included in the insured’s gross estate.
Caselaw UpdateBy Michael EnglishTrusts and Estates, March 2025Summaries of written decisions in three cases of interest to trust & estates practitioners.
Proposal for a Pilot Project to Enhance Case Management in Respondents Involving Both Mental Health Proceedings and Guardianship ProceedingsBy Judge Maureen Ward Kirby, Judge Daniel Malone, & Judge Susan Kennedy SullivanTrusts and Estates, March 2025Because of the size of our Cook County Court system, in certain circumstances, there is a more burdensome, costly, and inefficient legal process where a resident is a respondent in two separate legal arenas: a resident is or will be ordered to outpatient treatment for his/her/their mental health treatment and where the same Cook County resident is or will benefit from some level of guardianship.
2025 UpdatesBy Paul FousekTrusts and Estates, February 2025The following are updates regarding retirement plan limits, tax brackets, and estate tax limits for 2025. Additionally, Paul Fousek includes key insights into the market trends that may impact your financial planning.
Powerful or Powerless?By Thomas N. Osran & Robert S. HeldTrusts and Estates, January 2025Do recent amendments to the Power of Attorney Act solve an old problem?
Elder Law and Special Needs Update Year–End 2024 and MoreBy Zisl Edelson, J.D., MBATrusts and Estates, December 2024A discussion regarding the most important 2024 updates for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income of interest to estate planning practitioners.
Illinois Trust Code Amendments Adding New Obligations for TrusteesBy Neil T. GoltermannTrusts and Estates, December 2024The purpose of this article is to identify and discuss the amendments to Sections 809 and 810 of the Illinois Trust Code pursuant Public Act 103-0977, which is effective January 1, 2025, and the issues attorneys involved in drafting trusts, as well as the administration of trusts, may want to take into consideration.
The Logistics of Handling Powers of Attorney Under the Recent Amendments to the Act – Reasonable and Unreasonable Cause to RefuseBy Michael J. FleckTrusts and Estates, December 2024Senate Bill 3421 was enacted as Public Act 103-0994 on August 9, 2024, to be effective January 1, 2025. The Public Act makes certain changes to the Illinois Power of Attorney Act, specifically under Section 2-8. This article will focus on the practical logistics of handling powers of attorney due to these recent amendments, to minimize the chance that powers of attorney are rejected by a third party.
Statutory Amendments Affecting the Illinois Power of Attorney for Property – Boon or Bane for Estate Planning Attorneys?By Mia O. Hernandez & Jennifer Bunker SkerstonTrusts and Estates, December 2024Recently, lively discussion ensued among estate planning practitioner members of the Trusts and Estates Section on the ISBA Central Community discussion board regarding Public Act 103-0994, effective January 1, 2025, which amends the Illinois Power of Attorney Act to add and describe unreasonable and reasonable causes for a third party to refuse to honor powers of attorney for property. The impetus for the Act’s amendment was to redress the perceived problem that it is not uncommon for third parties to unreasonably reject powers of attorney for property.
24 Legal Practice TipsBy Colleen L. SahlasTrusts and Estates, November 2024Tips learned from 24 years in legal practice of interest to trusts & estates practitioners.
In re Hirschfeld—Presumptions of Gift or Undue Influence, Fraud for POA SpouseBy Chad J. RichterTrusts and Estates, November 2024On August 1, 2023, the Illinois Appellate Court of the Fifth District clarified a nuance to the burden-shifting presumptions applied to spouses and fiduciaries. The Hirschfeld case concerned a citation to recover assets proceeding brought by the decedent’s children of a former marriage against the surviving spouse, who was also the attorney-in-fact of the decedent.
Twelve Tips for New Probate AttorneysBy Mary E. VanekTrusts and Estates, October 2024Tips on key issues that attorneys new to probate practice struggle with in court.
