General Blog
What does the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision declaring DOMA unconstitutional mean to Illinois same-sex couples? Well, while a great moral victory and as portents for the future, a great deal; in the immediate material sense – not much. Why? Because it affects only same-sex couples who are legally married and/or reside in a state that permits same-sex couples to be…Read More
Because property values and interest rates are at historic lows and the federal gift and estate tax exemption is at a historically high level, there are currently unprecedented opportunities to leverage gifts and save on estate taxes. These opportunities are very likely to evaporate after the close of 2012 for the following reasons. First, there is virtually no real dialogue…Read More
Under a new Illinois law, certain service providers will no longer be able to charge women more for the same services that men receive. The legislation is intended to increase transparency in pricing and expose gender – based price discrimination. The law requires hair salons, barbers, dry cleaners and tailors to provide customers with a price list for services upon…Read More
Governor Pat Quinn recently signed a number of bills that are intended to protect senior citizens from financial or physical harm. The new laws are designed to protect seniors in a variety of ways, from financial exploitation to ensuring that certain financial agreements are consistent with the person’s power of attorney. NEW LAWS TO SAFEGUARD THE ELDERLY Governor Pat Quinn…Read More
Durable powers of attorney for property (POAFP)are a relatively recent innovation and a very useful tool permitted under Illinois law. Such powers allow a trusted third party to handle individual financial transactions for the creator of the POAFP. A POAFP can be effective from the moment of its execution, or from the time the creator becomes incapacitated. Whether to use…Read More
Illinois now has joined such states as Nevada by amending the Illinois Limited Liability Company Act (the “Act”) to provide further protection to members of an LLC, as well as to the assets of the LLC, from a member’s judgment creditor. The amendment provides that a charging order is the exclusive remedy of a judgment creditor seeking to enforce and…Read More
Recently Donald Trump was successful in his defense of a claim by a woman who claimed that he was guilty of fraud for failing to allow condominium unit purchasers in the Trump Tower to share in the profits of certain amenities as allegedly promised in Trump’s marketing materials. Mr. Trump has now again defeated a claim by a defaulting purchaser…Read More
Good News! The Illinois state death tax exclusion has increased from $2 million to $3.5 million effective January 1, 2012. Therefore, for estates of persons dying in 2012, Illinois’ piece of the estate tax pie will be appreciably reduced. The good news continues in 2013 when the exclusion increases to $4 million. This still leaves a gap between the federal…Read More
Illinois law allows a surviving spouse to renounce the will of a spouse by filing a written instrument of renunciation within seven months of the admission of the Will to probate. The effect of the renunciation is to entitle the surviving spouse to receive one-third of the decedent’s probate estate, if the testator leaves a descendant, or one-half if the…Read More
Does an inherited Individual retirement account maintain its original exemption from creditor’s claims? Under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, funds that are set aside for retirement needs need not be used to pay pre-retirement debts. However,when the owner of the IRA dies, whether the exemption continues may depend upon where the beneficiary resides and what relationship the beneficiary had…Read More