Illinois Wills Attorney — Simple and Complex Wills

Under 755 ILCS 5/4-3 a will must be in writing, signed by the person making it (or by someone at their direction and in their presence), and attested in their presence by two or more credible witnesses. Illinois does not require a notary. Most wills add a self-proving affidavit signed by the witnesses, which lets the court admit the will without tracking the witnesses down. A witness who is also a beneficiary can lose the gift, so we never use family members as witnesses.

The price depends on what the will has to do and on the documents that go with it. A straightforward will with a guardian nomination and a trust for young children costs less than a will coordinating a blended family, a business interest or property in another state. Nearly every client also needs a power of attorney for property and one for health care, and we quote those together. The fee is quoted in writing before any drafting starts.

Because it saves your family a search. Under 755 ILCS 5/6-4 a will is proved by the statements of its two attesting witnesses, which can be given in court, in an attestation clause, or in an affidavit the witnesses sign at or after the attestation. With the affidavit attached, the Probate Division can admit the will without tracking down the witnesses years later. It is the one part of a will signing a notary takes part in; the will itself does not need to be notarized.

Yes. Under 755 ILCS 5/11-5 a parent may designate a guardian of a minor's person or estate, or both, in a will or other writing witnessed by two adults who are not the person named. The court still appoints the guardian, but a designation signed and witnessed like a will has prima facie validity, so the judge starts from your choice. Name a successor too, and consider naming a different person or a trustee to manage the money.

Illinois does not require a lawyer, and a handwritten or form will that is signed and witnessed by two credible witnesses is valid. The risk is not validity but content: a form that leaves a house to a minor, forgets the residue, names a witness as a beneficiary, or contradicts the beneficiary form on a retirement account creates a probate problem the family discovers after you are gone. We often review homemade wills; sometimes they work, and we say so.

Your probate assets pass under the intestacy rules in 755 ILCS 5/2-1. A surviving spouse and descendants split the estate half and half; a spouse alone takes all; descendants alone take all; with neither, it goes to parents and siblings. The court appoints an administrator, and any share for a minor is held under court supervision. Unmarried partners, stepchildren and charities receive nothing.

A pour-over will leaves whatever is still in your own name at death to the trustee of your revocable trust. Illinois permits it under 755 ILCS 5/4-4, even though the trust can be amended after the will is signed. It is a safety net, not a substitute for funding the trust: anything that pours over still goes through probate first if it exceeds the small-estate limit or includes real estate.

No. A will is the document that gets probated. Under 755 ILCS 5/6-1 whoever holds the original must file it with the clerk of the circuit court immediately after death, and if the estate includes real estate in the decedent's sole name or more than the small-estate limit in personal property, someone must open a probate case to carry out the will. Avoiding probate takes a funded revocable trust, beneficiary designations, joint title or a transfer on death instrument.