Qualifications

Over 20 Years of Legal Practice

• Estate planning, estate and trust administration, and real estate.
• Admitted to practice in Illinois (2001), Florida (2019), and Wisconsin (2001), as well as before the United States Tax Court and the United States Supreme Court.

Extensive ISBA Leadership Experience

• Board of Governors (2019 – Present): Elected representative for Area IV (Circuits 10, 14, and 15)
• Treasurer (2022 – 2023)
• Secretary (2021 – 2022)
• ISBA Mutual Board of Directors (2023 – Present)
• Chair of Illinois Lawyers’ Political Action Committee (LAWPAC) (2016 – 2022)
• Illinois Bar Foundation, Champions Secretary (2024 – Present)
• Standing Committee on Investments (2019 – Present)
• Budget and Audit Committee (2019 – Present)
• Personnel Committee (2019 – Present)
• Chair of Elder Law Section Council
• Assembly (2010 – 2015, 2019 – Present)
• Standing Committee on CLE (2014 – 2021)
• ARDC Hearing Board Panel Chair (2014 – Present)
• Stephenson County Bar Association President (2018 – 2021)

Bar Associations

• Illinois State Bar Association
• Wisconsin State Bar Association
• Florida Bar Association
• Stephenson County Bar Association
• Chicago Bar Association
• Kane County Bar Association
• DuPage County Bar Association
• Justinian Society of Lawyers
• Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois
• Women’s Bar Association of Illinois
• Peoria County Bar Association
• Decalogue Society of Lawyers
• Illinois Trial Lawyers Association

Publications and Speaking Engagements

• Speaker, IICLE, Foundations and Frontiers in Illinois Estate Planning, Administration, and Litigation, Chicago, IL, May 17, 2024
• Speaker, Illinois Central Estate Planning Association, The New Illinois Trust Code, Decatur, IL, May 19, 2021
• Speaker, Illinois State Bank Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp, Chicago, IL, April 28, 2017 - Topics: Trust Administration, Powers of Attorney
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp, Chicago, IL, April 22, 2016 - Topic: Planning for an Aging Population
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Practice Institute, Rockford, IL, October 2, 2015 - Topic: Best Probate Practices
• Multiple Speaking Engagements on Elder Law, Trusts, Estate Planning, and Legal Ethics

Community Service

• Freeport Health Network Board of Directors (2014 – Present; Chair 2023 – Present): Leads the largest employer in the county.
• Freeport Health Network Foundation Board of Directors (2012 – 2018, 2020 – Present)
• Parkview Home, Freeport, IL, Board of Directors (2005 – 2020)
• Freeport Art Museum, Board of Directors (2005 – 2017)
• Prairie State Legal Services, Board of Directors (2002 – 2006)
• Stephenson County Senior Center, Multidisciplinary Team (2002 – 2010)
• United Way of Northwest Illinois, Community Action Committee (2003 – 2005): Worked on initiatives to improve community well-being.