Wills Lawyer Deerfield, IL
If you know you need a will but keep putting it off, you’re not alone. Most people are in exactly that position. It’s not that they don’t care. It’s that the process feels bigger than it probably is, and starting means thinking about things nobody particularly wants to think about.
But without a valid will in place, Illinois law will decide who raises your children, who handles your finances, and who inherits your property after you die. Those defaults are rarely what people would choose.
Our Deerfield, IL wills attorney at Kravets Law Group makes this straightforward. Founding attorney Daniel Kravets has been practicing since 2016, opened the firm in 2020, and handles all will matters himself. We work with individuals and families throughout Deerfield and the broader Lake County area, from first wills for new parents to full revisions after major life changes. Flat-rate pricing is available for standalone wills and bundled will-and-trust packages. Free consultations are available.
Why Choose Kravets Law Group for Wills in Deerfield, IL?
Drafting Experience Across Real Situations
Daniel Kravets has spent close to a decade drafting wills for Illinois families at virtually every estate size and family configuration: single-owner estates, blended households with children from multiple relationships, multi-property owners where how each asset was titled shaped every distribution decision, and business owners who needed succession provisions built directly into the document. He holds membership in the Chicago Bar Association, earned his JD from Drexel University Law, and is admitted to practice in Illinois, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. He is also completing a book on estate planning and speaks regularly at professional and community events throughout the Chicago area.
As the lead estate planning lawyer in Deerfield, IL at Kravets Law Group, Daniel has worked with clients with assets ranging from modest estates to holdings in the $30 million range. The complexity of the estate changes what the document needs to do. The standard for getting it right does not.
A Will That Works With the Rest of Your Plan
A will doesn’t operate in isolation. Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, transfer-on-death bank accounts, and jointly titled real estate all transfer based on designations, not will language. If those pieces aren’t aligned with the will’s provisions, the result is often not what you intended. We review how assets are titled and structured before drafting begins, so the document we produce fits your full picture rather than contradicting what surrounds it.
For clients considering other estate planning tools, it’s important to know that wills and trusts need to be built together. A pour-over will that assumes a funded trust, without confirming the trust is actually funded, leaves gaps that matter. We address both documents as part of a single coordinated plan.
Flat-Rate Pricing
Will planning at Kravets Law Group is priced on a flat-rate basis for standalone wills and bundled will-and-trust packages. You know what the work costs before anything is drafted. No hourly billing tied to how many revisions a more complex situation requires, or how many questions you ask along the way.
Client Commitment
We have drafted wills for Deerfield clients and families throughout Lake County across a wide range of circumstances: blended households requiring specific distribution provisions to avoid unintended exclusions, multi-property owners where asset titling determined what the will could accomplish, and business owners who needed succession provisions built in. In each case, the goal is the same: a document that is legally sound, clearly worded, and holds up if challenged.
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“I worked with Kravets Law Group to create my estate plan, and the experience was outstanding from start to finish. Daniel took the time to understand my goals, explain my options clearly, and design a plan that truly fits my family’s needs. He’s incredibly knowledgeable about trusts, wills, and asset protection strategies, but also approachable and patient. Can’t recommend the firm enough!” — Lyudmyla Len
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Types of Will Matters We Handle in Deerfield
Illinois will planning varies considerably depending on your family structure, what you own, and how the rest of your estate plan is organized. The document a single person with a straightforward estate needs looks very different from what a blended family with multiple properties requires. These are the primary will-related matters we handle for Deerfield families and individuals throughout the Lake County area.
- Last will and testament. The foundation of most estate plans. A valid Illinois will designates your executor, nominates guardians for minor children, and directs how your property distributes at death. We handle both straightforward wills and more layered documents for clients with significant assets, blended households, and multiple beneficiaries.
- Pour-over wills. Designed to work alongside a revocable living trust, a pour-over will routes any assets not transferred into the trust during your lifetime there at death. It is a standard component of any trust-based estate plan and one we include in every trust engagement we handle for Deerfield clients.
- Codicils. A formal amendment to an existing will. Codicils must meet the same execution requirements as the original document, including proper signing and two qualified adult witnesses. We draft codicils when a client’s circumstances have changed in a targeted way and a full restatement isn’t warranted.
- Wills for blended families. Without explicit provisions, blended households can produce default distributions that unintentionally exclude children from a prior relationship. This requires specific drafting language that a generic document doesn’t include, and we’ve worked through this across many different family configurations.
- Wills alongside broader planning. Some clients come to us for a standalone will. Others are beginning a larger conversation that also includes a special needs trust, beneficiary designation reviews, and powers of attorney. The will we draft accounts for what surrounds it either way.
Illinois Legal Requirements for Wills
Under the Illinois Probate Act, 755 ILCS 5, a valid will in Illinois requires the testator to be at least 18 years old and of sound mind and memory at the time of execution. The will must be in writing, signed by the testator, and witnessed by two credible witnesses who are themselves at least 18. Illinois does not recognize holographic wills. A handwritten document signed only by the testator, no matter how clearly it expresses the testator’s intentions, will not be admitted to probate without proper witnesses.
Without a valid will, intestate succession under 755 ILCS 5/2-1 controls. For a married individual with children, assets divide between the surviving spouse and children in statutory proportions that frequently don’t match what the decedent would have chosen. For unmarried individuals or those without children, assets pass through a priority order extending to parents, siblings, and more distant relatives.
For Deerfield residents, wills are probated through the 19th Judicial Circuit Court in Lake County. Estates valued over $4 million may be subject to the Illinois estate tax, with graduated rates up to 16%. Larger estates face separate federal estate tax filing obligations that run alongside probate with their own deadlines. Both are worth addressing during the will drafting process, not after.
Important Aspects of a Deerfield Wills Case
Naming the Right Executor
The executor handles every stage of the probate process: filing the will with the court, locating and inventorying assets, paying valid debts and taxes, and distributing what remains to beneficiaries. It is a substantive legal responsibility, not a ceremonial title. The wrong choice creates delays and conflicts that affect every beneficiary. We work through this question carefully, particularly for estates with property in multiple locations, business interests, or family dynamics that might shape how the administration unfolds. A co-executor or professional executor is sometimes the right answer, and we work through that option with clients who need it.
Guardian Designations for Minor Children
For parents, this is often the most consequential provision in the entire document. A will is the only legal mechanism for nominating a guardian for your minor children in Illinois. Without one, a court makes that decision without any direction from you. The person who serves as guardian and the person who manages the child’s inherited assets are also worth considering separately, because those responsibilities often suit different people.
Specific Bequests and the Residuary Estate
A will can direct specific property, sentimental items, or dollar amounts to named individuals before the remainder distributes to residuary beneficiaries. This matters when certain assets carry real emotional or financial significance and need to go to particular people. Vague or poorly drafted specific bequests are among the more common triggers for will contests in Illinois and can produce the exact family conflict the testator would have wanted to avoid. We’ve seen contested probate matters arise directly from ambiguous bequest language, and we draft specifically to prevent it.
What a Will Does Not Control
Transfer-on-death accounts, jointly titled real estate, retirement accounts, and life insurance all transfer based on designations, not will provisions. We review how every asset is held as part of the drafting process, because a will that assumes everything passes through probate leaves real gaps. Recent high-profile estate cases have illustrated how even families who planned carefully end up with complications when titling and document language don’t align.
Pour-Over Provisions and Trust Coordination
Clients who want both a will and a living trust need those documents drafted together. A pour-over will directs assets into the trust at death, but the trust has to be properly funded during your lifetime for that to mean anything. An unfunded trust with a pour-over will attached doesn’t accomplish what the client intended. Families considering a living trust for the first time often find the funding process is where the plan works or falls apart.
Contact Kravets Law Group
A well-drafted will doesn’t need to be a complicated or drawn-out process. We work with Deerfield families at every stage of life, from first wills for new parents to full revisions following major life changes, divorces, or property acquisitions. When you reach out, we’ll schedule a free consultation to review your situation and explain what the process involves before you commit to anything. Contact us to get started.