Best Lawyers in Illinois, United States for Trusts and Estates
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Jeffrey A. Zaluda is a partner at Horwood Marcus & Berk and chairs the Trusts and Estates Group. He advises individuals, families, fiduciaries, closely held businesses and business owners with respect to estate planning, business planning, asset protection and preservation, estate and trust administration, tax planning, and estate and trust litigation. Jeff is a technically adept estate planner, comfortable with both the straightforward and the sophisticated. His clients value his ability...
Timothy J. Ritchey is a partner at Peck Ritchey, LLC who concentrates his practice in estate and trust litigation , elder law , and guardianship . Tim has been appointed Special Assistant Attorney General in numerous matters to represent the State’s interests in actions relating to Illinois healthcare and disability law. In 2014, Tim wrote legislation and testified as an expert before the Illinois Senate on an amendment to the Illinois Probate Act regarding elder abuse and financial exp...
Nicole K. Mann focuses her practice on all aspects of tax and estate planning, estate and trust administration and family business planning. She also has considerable experience in estate, trust and tax litigation involving disputes between and among family members, fiduciaries and beneficiaries. Nicole is a co-chair of the Firm’s Trust & Estate Controversy group. Read full biography: https://www.mwe.com/people/mann-nicole-k/
Neil T. Kawashima has a diverse practice, representing wealthy individuals and families on matters related to estate and gift planning, business succession and governance, and estate and trust administration. Neil’s clients include owners of privately-held businesses, beneficiaries of long-term trusts, fiduciaries and entrepreneurs. Neil has advised his clients regarding traditional and novel uses of trusts, wealth transfer strategies, business control mechanisms such as voting trusts a...
Larry is chair of the firm’s Private Wealth Services practice group. He facilitates successful legal strategies for entrepreneurs, tax-exempt organizations, fiduciaries and high-net worth families and individuals. This work involves estate, gift and charitable planning issues, including business succession, tax-efficient ownership structures, sophisticated tax-exempt structures, trust and estate administration, executive benefits, life insurance and international estate planning for wea...
Jason S. Ornduff advises high net worth families, business owners, executives, professionals and celebrities on state and federal laws regarding wealth transfer to the next generation, including estate planning, estate and trust administration, and estate and gift tax issues. Jason also counsels closely-held companies on various legal issues, especially in the areas of succession planning. Jason is a past president of the Greater North Shore Estate and Financial Planning Council. He is also a...
Michael (Mike) J. Sorrow focuses his practice on tax, estate planning, family business and trust and estate administration matters. Mike regularly advises wealthy individuals and families on all aspects of wealth and tax planning matters. In addition, Mike works extensively with families that control significant public and private businesses, counseling them and their family offices on matters relating to effective tax planning, succession and governance planning and the intra-family issues t...
James H. Cundiff advises clients on family wealth and business planning, federal estate, gift and generation-skipping tax planning, and estate and trust administration. James represents entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and other business leaders and wealthy individuals on estate and tax planning matters. Counseling closely held businesses and family members, James is actively engaged in the structuring of family businesses as well as business control and succession planning, multi-generat...
Libby concentrates her practice in estate planning in the area of probate with a focus on the estate tax aspects, contested estates and trust reformation. Libby has practiced before the Tax Court and has represented several tax-exempt organizations, including both private foundations and public charities. She has administered numerous large estates and has successfully negotiated favorable settlements with the Internal Revenue Service both at the audit and appellate levels on issues such as v...
Peter S. Coorlas is a senior associate of the Chicago law firm Peck Ritchey, LLC . Peter was an Assistant State’s Attorney for Cook County for 30 years, serving in the Special Litigation and Municipal Litigation Sections of the Civil Actions Bureau. Although Peter served in various areas while at the State’s Attorneys Office, he has primarily represented the interests of Cook County in probate matters, spending much of his time on contested litigation, including will contests, con...
Eric builds sophisticated estate planning strategies for families and individuals, including business owners and executives. He also counsels clients on the legal and business implications of major life events, including premarital planning, relocating to a new jurisdiction, appointing short-term guardians for vacationing relatives and loved ones and designating agents for health care decisions. Eric represents clients spanning numerous industries and backgrounds, including traders, doctors, ...
Susan is a partner in the Private Wealth Services practice group. Susan focuses her practice on sophisticated estate planning for business owners, wealthy individuals and entrepreneurs. She helps her clients transfer wealth to younger generations to achieve tax efficiencies as well as protection for beneficiaries and counsels her clients in connection with complex intrafamily issues that wealthy families often face. In addition to helping clients structure their estate plans, Susan advises cl...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.