The objective of HUCK & BRISSKE is to deliver quality legal services at a fair fee. It is our practice not to charge for an initial appointment. Such appointments give our clients an opportunity to meet and evaluate us, and give us the opportunity to evaluate our clients' values, needs and objectives.

Estate Planning. We believe that every estate plan should include Durable Powers of Attorney for Health Care and Property and a Living Will. Therefore, all fees quoted include those documents, unless a client specifically requests to the contrary. All estate plans utilizing living trusts also include a companion, or pour-over, will. Finally, in all situations where we draft a living trust, the fees include assistance with the funding of the trust. Funding, which is the transfer of assets to a trust, is critically important to the effectiveness of an estate plan in which the living trust is the primary estate planning document; if assets are not owned by the living trust during life, guardianship may be necessary in the event of incapacity, and if assets are not owned by the living trust at death, a probate proceeding is almost certain to be rerquired in the administration of the estate. If the living trust includes planning to reduce or avoid estate taxes, ownership of assets other than in the name of the living trust may sabotage the plan altogether. In addition to helping the client transfer assets to the living trust, we also assist in developing proper beneficiary designations for life insurance policies, and review, and often revise, beneficiary designations for profit sharing plans, 401(k) plans, IRAs, and other retirement accounts. The overall goal is to provide each client with a unified and complete estate plan. An Estate Planning Portfolio accompanies every Living Trust Estate Plan, so that our clients are able to keep copies of all their documents in one place, along with funding and other valuable information necessary to an understanding of their plan. The Estate Planning Portfolio also proves to be a valuable tool for surviving beneficiaries and fiduciaries.

Our estate planning services are generally delivered on a flat fee basis. We make it a point to discuss our fees with each client before an attorney-client relationship is established. At the initial meeting we discuss the client's estate planning objectives. We then offer solutions to accomplish those objectives. The recommendations generally include additional legal advice in two primary areas: income, estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax issues; and costs of administration during life and at death. Once all information necessary to effectuate the estate plan has been obtained, a final fee is quoted and an out-of-pocket cost estimate is given to the client. Those fees and costs are confirmed in writing, and the client is asked to countersign a fee agreement so that there is no misunderstanding about the services being provided and the fees being charged.

Fees depend upon the type and complexity of the plan being developed, the asset mix, the extent of tax planning involved, and other factors. More complex planning may include vehicles such as Charitable Remainder Trusts, Qualified Personal Residence Trusts, Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts or Family Limited Partnerships. It is impossible to estimate a fee until we have the client's personal and financial information, know the client's estate planning goals and objectives, and have an opportunity to discuss various estate planning alternatives with him or her.

Administration. Fees for estate and trust administration may be quoted on a flat fee or hourly basis, or as a combination. The amount of the fees being charged is generally determined by a number of different factors, including whether a probate proceeding is required, the size and complexity of the estate or trust, the manner in which assets are held, the type of assets involved, whether federal and/or state estate tax returns must be filed, the presence or absence of real estate in Illinois or elsewhere, the character and amount of debts left by the decedent, valuation issues and other factors too numerous to mention. Each situation is unique and must be evaluated based upon these and other factors which may affect the time involved in proper administration.