Estate Planning · Lombard, Illinois
Wills, trusts, and the planning that keeps your family in control and out of court, from the same DuPage County firm since 1990.
Lombard families come to estate planning from every direction — young parents who just bought their first home, longtime residents who have watched the Lilac Village grow around them, and retirees thinking about what they will leave behind. Whatever stage you are at, a good estate plan does the same job: it protects you if you become unable to manage your affairs, and it makes sure your property reaches the people you choose without unnecessary cost or court delay. We help Lombard residents put that protection in place.
Lombard is in DuPage County, so absent planning, an estate here is administered through probate at the DuPage County Judicial Center in Wheaton. You work directly with the attorney building your estate plan, and we coordinate the whole picture — will, trust, powers of attorney, and tax considerations — rather than handing you disconnected documents. We take the time to explain how the pieces fit so the plan actually works when your family needs it.
Full estate planning practice, every service handled by one experienced team.
Decades of estate planning work for Lombard families, from longtime homes near Yorktown to the neighborhoods around Main Street.
Thirty plus years in the DuPage County courts in Wheaton, plus the recorder, title companies, and assessor offices a Lombard estate runs through.
Chris or John handles your file personally. No handoffs to paralegals or junior attorneys.
Flat-fee pricing where possible. Hourly only when scope justifies it. Quoted upfront.
Beyond estate planning, the firm also handles real estate, probate, criminal defense, and civil litigation.
Initial consultation is free. No obligation to engage afterward.
People tend to think of estate planning as being about what happens after they are gone, but for many Lombard families the more immediate value is protection during life. If illness or an accident leaves you unable to handle your own finances or medical decisions, durable powers of attorney let someone you trust step in without a court proceeding. Without those documents, your family may have to petition the DuPage County court for guardianship — a public, costly process that proper planning avoids entirely. The living side of estate planning is often the part that matters first.
On the after-death side, the goal for most Lombard households is to pass the home and savings to their family smoothly. A will alone still goes through probate in Wheaton; a funded living trust keeps your estate out of court and private. We help you decide which approach fits — not everyone needs a trust — and we make sure whatever plan you choose is complete, including the beneficiary designations and titling that quietly control where much of your wealth actually goes.
From our Villa Park office, we serve Lombard residents and businesses across DuPage and Cook County.
Yes, Lombard families are a steady part of our estate planning work. Lombard sits squarely in DuPage County, so the wills, trusts, and powers of attorney we prepare are built for the DuPage system, and any probate is handled through the county court in Wheaton. We have served Lombard households since 1990.
Standard plans (will, trust, POAs, advance directives) are flat-fee. We quote exact pricing at your free consultation based on complexity and family situation.
Depends on your situation. Most families with real estate, minor children, or assets above $200K benefit from trust-based planning. Will-only plans work for simpler situations. We tell you honestly at consultation.
Typical timeline: initial consultation (Day 1), drafts ready in 1-2 weeks, signing ceremony shortly after. Most plans complete within a month.
Most consultations happen by phone or video. Signing requires either in-office or remote notary process. We accommodate however works best.
Lombard is in DuPage County, so probate for a Lombard resident takes place at the DuPage County Judicial Center in Wheaton. Since that process is public and can take many months, a major goal of estate planning is to keep your family out of it where possible, usually through a funded living trust. When probate is required, we represent the family and keep it moving as efficiently as the court allows.
If you lose the ability to manage your affairs and have no powers of attorney in place, your family generally has to ask the DuPage County court to appoint a guardian — a public proceeding that takes time and money and may not put the person you would have chosen in charge. Durable powers of attorney for finances and health care prevent all of that by naming your decision-makers in advance. Setting them up while you are healthy is one of the simplest and most valuable parts of a plan.
Whether you’re planning ahead or in the middle of an active matter, the first conversation is free.