Chicago Probate Lawyer Jay Goldenberg

During five years as an estate and gift tax attorney for the Internal Revenue Service, was selected to teach the training course and received recognition for outstanding performance. Has spent more than 25 years in private practice concentrating on estate planning and administration, the use of trusts and business succession planning. See more information at http://www.chicplan.com

Wrote chapter on federal taxation of life insurance, and irrevocable insurance trusts, for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education Handbook on Taxation of Life Insurance. Articles have appeared in Estate Planning, Taxation for Accountants, Estate Planners Quarterly, Taxes, ISBA Journal, Illinois Trusts and Estates Journal, Journal of Financial Planning, Tax Angles, Personal Finance and The CLU Journal.

Taught Estate Administration for the Roosevelt University Lawyers Assistant Program and Business Tax Planning and Advanced Estate Planning for the Huebner School of The American College. Lectured on family limited partnerships for the ISBA Law-Ed Program, on irrevocable life insurance trusts for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education and on charitable trusts for the Lyric Opera of Chicago and ISBA Trusts and Estates Section. Also spoken for the Wisconsin Bar Association Taxation Section, the Virginia Bankers Association Trust Section, the Chicago Association of Life Underwriters and numerous estate planning and financial planning groups.

Selected by American Research Corporation as one of Illinois' Leading Trusts and Estate Planning Attorneys. Only attorneys receiving multiple nominations by their peers are so listed.

Approaches range from wills and powers of attorney to buy-sell agreements, living trusts, marital and shelter trusts, generation-skipping, irrevocable insurance trusts, charitable remainder trusts, asset protection, family limited partnerships and advanced trusts.

Professional Associations:

American Bar Association; Illinois State Bar Association (Trusts and Estates Section Council 1992-96, 2000-); Chicago Bar Association (Federal Tax Committee [Estate and Gift Tax Division, past Chair]); Chicago Estate Planning Council; Chicago Council on Planned Giving; Co-Moderator of National Trusts and Estates Web Page on Counsel Connect; member of the Chicagoland and Hyde Park Chambers of Commerce.

Too many people equate estate planning with reducing taxes. Actually, there is a simple way to pay no estate taxes -- leave everything to charity. What's that? You say that wouldn't leave anything for your family? Okay, so let's focus on what you want to accomplish.

Congress, in its finite wisdom, has decided that no tax need be paid by estates under $X. In 2003 X is equal to $1,000,000 increasing eventually to $3,500,000 and then going back to $1,000,000 (see THE TAX LAW OF 2001). As the parent of a teenager, does that mean you feel comfortable with them getting $600,000 at 21? See Trusts.

I consider estate planning a process in which we:

Identify what you want to happen, in event of your incapacity or death

Identify the assets you have to accomplish those goals

Devise a plan to direct the assets toward the goals

Implement the plan

In that process we will seek, to the extent consistent with the goals, to maximize assets (e.g. by getting insurance).

As part of that process, to the extent consistent with goals and higher priorities, we will seek to reduce taxes. Even though there are many tax saving techniques presented, they are ultimately tools to accomplish your goals.

For more information, look us up at: http://www.chicplan.com