Category Archives: Probate/Trust Administration
The Good Wife, Probate and Sticky Notes
Spoiler Alert: If you have the Oct. 4 season premiere of The Good Wife on your DVR, you may want to look away. Alicia has a new estate case Alicia has her first new client, apparently from her website (although we later learn that the client was referred by Louis Canning). Ms. Smulders explains… Read More »
Ernie Banks Estate, Part 7: Intro to Will and Trust Contests
This is the seventh in my series on various legal aspects of the Estate of Ernie Banks. You can read my first six installments here. Before I get into today’s main topic, I want to update regular readers on developments since my last installment on July 28. As you’re probably aware, Elizabeth Banks filed… Read More »
Ernie Banks Estate, Part 6: Surviving Spouse’s Award
This is the sixth in my series on various legal aspects of the Estate of Ernie Banks. You can read my first five installments here. First, and before I completely bury the lead, news broke just yesterday that Elizabeth Banks filed the anticipated Will (and Trust) Contest on July 24. You can read about… Read More »
IRS Issues Final Regulations for Estate Tax Portability Elections
On June 12, 2015 — nearly 3 years after issuing temporary regulations — the IRS issued spousal portability election final regulations (read TD 9725 at the Federal Register here). The final regs don’t vary significantly from the temporary regs, but they do serve as an excellent reminder that spousal portability will be permanently waived… Read More »
Ernie Banks Estate, Part 5: Rights of Publicity
The Ernie Banks Estate is not becoming any less contentious as time passes. His widow and his caretaker/executor continue to do battle over information in probate court. Today’s post will first bring you up-to-date on the citation proceedings introduced in my last post. Then I’ll highlight some of the revelations contained in the recent… Read More »
Can a Copy of a Lost Will be Admitted to Probate in Illinois?
If you’re anything like my law firm, you may be trying to digitize files and keep less paper. It generally works great — easy searchable access to files at your fingertips without having to chase down documents hidden away in file boxes or cabinets. The evolution will continue toward paper-less, though probably never entirely… Read More »
Ernie Banks Estate, Part 4: Citations to Discover and Recover
Cubs legend Ernie Banks died nearly 4 months ago, but his estate continues to make headlines as new facts and twists trickle out in the legal wrangling between his caretaker and his family. The ultimate battle has yet to begin — a will contest has not yet even been filed — but the battle… Read More »
Ernie Banks Estate, Part 3: Creditor Claims Against the Estate
Mr. Cub’s estate battle has now entered roughly the top of the second inning. To recap, you can read my first two installments on this case here and here. What’s happened since my last installment on March 3rd? Quite a bit (you can actually review the basic probate docket entries here). I will start… Read More »
The ‘Two and a Half Men’ Finale and Presumption of Death Probate
I finally got around to watching the ‘Two and a Half Men’ series finale on CBS recently. After 12 seasons, it was time to write its obituary. Surprisingly enough, I actually found the finale to be moderately entertaining. Perhaps it was due to the dialogue involving unclaimed property and death certificates. In a nutshell,… Read More »
Guest Blog: Things That Need to be Done When a Business Owner Dies
Today’s post is a guest blog written by Robert Deprez — Managing Director and Founder of Deprez Leadership in Chicago, which provides leadership transition advisory and interim CEO services to middle market companies. For additional articles and information on Deprez Leadership, visit www.deprezleadership.com. The unexpected death of a business owner triggers a number of… Read More »