Estate Planning
in Deerfield, IL.
Make sure the people you love get what you've built.
Estate planning isn't just for the wealthy, it's for anyone who wants to make sure their family is taken care of. Without a plan, Illinois probate courts decide who gets your assets, who takes care of your children, and how your life's work is distributed.
At our firm, we work with families across Chicago's Northern Suburbs to create estate plans that protect your legacy, minimize taxes, avoid probate, and ensure your wishes are honored.
What this looks like in Deerfield.
Deerfield's combination of high home values and significant corporate retirement accumulations means that many clients have estates well above the Illinois $4 million threshold, often without recognizing it. We coordinate estate planning with Lake County estate attorneys, focusing on bypass trust structures for married couples, beneficiary designation alignment across all corporate and personal accounts, and the specific Lake County probate rules that govern estate administration.
The county details.
Lake County's concentration of high-net-worth families, particularly in Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, Barrington, and Bannockburn, makes Illinois estate tax planning a first-order priority. Illinois's $4 million exemption isn't portable between spouses without specific trust planning: without an AB trust or disclaimer trust, the first spouse's exemption may be wasted and the surviving spouse's estate pays Illinois estate tax on everything above $4 million. For Lake County families with a primary residence worth $1.5 million or more plus investment assets and retirement accounts, the potential Illinois estate tax exposure is real and plannable, but only with proper structure in place before the first death.
Why Deerfield.
Many Deerfield residents are retiring from corporate careers with complex benefits packages, stock options, deferred compensation, pension buyouts, and executive retirement plans. We specialize in unwinding these benefits into a cohesive retirement income strategy.
Things Deerfield families ask.
Down the shore.
Talk to a Deerfield
advisor.
One free conversation about estate planning, at your kitchen table, our Evanston office, or a video call.