New Douglas Probate Lawyers

Michael J. Swanson is an experienced courtroom attorney who knows how to navigate the court system to aggressively represent his clients and maximize favorable outcomes. Prior to joining the law firm of Swanson & Sackett P.C., Michael served as the Managing Attorney in the Madison County State's Attorney's Office child support division. In this role, he handled thousands of cases each year and gained extensive courtroom experience. Michael earned his Juris Doctorate at Saint Louis University and his bachelor's degree at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), which he attended following his six-year enlistment with the U.S. Air Force....

Barbara has been practicing law in the St. Louis Metro East area for over 27 years, concentrating in the areas of family law, real estate law, criminal defense and general civil practice.

She completed both her undergraduate degree and Juris Doctorate at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. During law school, she clerked on the Court of Appeals in Eastern Missouri and worked at a personal injury law firm.

After graduating, she worked at the Law Firm of Lucco, Brown, and Mudge in Edwardsville, Illinois. Additionally, Barbara was the lead attorney in the Domestic Violence/Child Support Enforcement Unit of the Madison County...

Devin C. DiDominicus was born in Granite City, Illinois. He received his law degree from DePaul College of Law in Chicago, Illinois where he won awards for his superior performance in trial advocacy, litigation strategies, and securities law. After spending time with the Cook County Public Defender’s Office, he returned to southern Illinois to open his own practice. While practicing on his own, he handled family cases, including complex and contested divorces, as well as criminal and testamentary matters. Counselor DiDominicus now works with the firm of Swanson and Sackett, P.C.

Blake Behme Gilbreth Links, P.C. has offices in Belleville, Collinsville, Edwardsville, Carlyle and Effingham, Illinois. AREAS OF PRACTICE: Probate Law, Family Law, Real Estate Law, Tax Law and Estate Planning, including Business, Child Custody, Child Support, Collaborative Divorce, Commercial Real Estate, Consume Protection, Debt Settlement, Divorce, Divorce Mediation, Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts, Breaches of Fiduciary Duty, Family, Foreclosure, Landlord/Tenant, Legal Malpractice, Litigation, Civil Lawsuits, Military Divorce, Nursing Home, Personal Injury, Probate, Estate Settlement, Real Estate, Securities, DCFS, Tax, Internal Revenue Service, Illinois Department of Revenue, Illinois Department of Employment Security and White Collar Crime.

Ms. Hicks has been practicing law in St. Clair and Monroe Counties for more than 18 years. She has successfully tried numerous divorce and custody cases. She is also an experienced mediator. Ms. Hicks grew up in a small town in Monroe County and returned to the area to practice law. She resides with her husband and son in Columbia.

Amy F. Spector is a managing partner with Hicks & Spector, L.L.C. She is licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois . Ms. Spector holds a B.S. in Business Administration from The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she majored in Marketing and minored in Psychology. Ms. Spector received her Juris Doctorate Degree from Southern Illinois University School of Law in Carbondale, Illinois, where she was an active member of the Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity, as well as the student division of the American Bar Association.

After law school, Ms. Spector went on...

Megan M. Nolan was born in 1983 in Belleville, Illinois. Ms. Nolan received a B.A., Honors Diploma, from Murray State University, in 2006, where she majored in Psychology and minored in Criminal Justice. Ms. Nolan received her J.D. from Saint Louis University School of Law in 2009, where she pursued a concentration in Civil Litigation. She was admitted to the Missouri Bar in 2009, and the Illinois Bar in 2010.

Hrant “Hud” Norsigian, Jr. is the founder and owner of Norsigian Law Office located in O’Fallon, Illinois. Mr. Norsigian has over 34 years’ experience as an attorney and is licensed in both Illinois and Missouri. Mr. Norsigian graduated with honors from Washington University in St. Louis in 1985 receiving his Bachelor of Science degree with a major in mathematics and a minor in economics. Mr. Norsigian graduated from Washington University School of Law (J.D. 1988), Magna Cum Laude and earned Order of the Coif honors. He was also awarded the American Jurisprudence Award for the...

Stan R. Weller is a practicing attorney in the Southern Illinois/Metro East St. Louis area. He established the Weller Law Firm in 2006 after a number of years in private firms, as well as a period with the Illinois Attorney General’s office working in the Sexually Violent Persons Unit. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1992 and his Juris Doctorate degree from the Southern Illinois University of Carbondale in 1998. He is a certified mediator, arbitrator, and former guardian ad litem, but concentrates his practice in the areas of family law and...

NATHAN P. LINKS, born in Carlyle, Illinois .
License: Illinois, 2012

Education: Southern Illinois University Carbondale (B.S. in Biological Sciences, 2009); St. Louis University School of Law (J.D., 2012)

Member: Illinois State Bar Association, St. Clair County Bar Association.

Areas of Practice: Mr. Links practices in the following areas of law: Estates and Trusts, Family Law, Real Estate, and Guardianships, as well as General Practice.

SK Walker Law, LLC in Marion, IL, is a Marine Corps Combat Veteran owned law firm with SIU School of Law Alum, attorney Scott Walker, who focuses his practice to the area of Personal Injury, Probate, Wills, Trust, Estates, Contract, Real Estate, Business and Mass Tort law. I use my military and mechanic background and training to troubleshoot, diagnose, and resolve our issues. I listen and relate to my clients through my real-world experience, which includes 14 years of military service, with combat tours during Desert Storm and Enduring Freedom, and over twenty years of managerial experience in the maintenance, mining, and...

I have been practicing law for over 30 years. I have served as a legal services attorney representing clients in orders of protection, divorce, and parentage matters. Next I served as a public defender for 4 years, handling criminal law, juvenile law and mental health commitment cases. I have been in private practice on my own since 1999 representing people in a variety of cases, mostly family law, juvenile law, criminal law, domestic violence, guardianships, powers of attorney, wills and landlord-tenant cases. I do a smattering of other things in general. I also hold a...

Following in his father’s footsteps as a legal advocate, Springfield personal injury lawyer James Ackerman established his practice in 1989.

Our approach to the law and to meeting our clients' needs comes from Jim Ackerman's belief that clients are best served when they are fully informed and engaged in every aspect of their case. Jim is a former prosecutor who handles injury claims and who coaches other attorneys on the finer points of case preparation, taking a case to trial, and the art of handling juries. Jim brings years of legal and courtroom experience to bear on every case.

Jim Ackerman...

John L. GreenLeaf, Jr. has been in practice over 37 years representing consumers and businesses in Central Illinois. The firm concentrates in all forms of Bankruptcy, Business formation, and the preparation of Wills, Trusts and Estate Planning and administration of Probate Estates and Guardianships.

I am a personable and caring attorney who aims to serve those in need.

My office is located in Coles County, but happy and able to serve those as far north as Champaign-Urbana, or as far south as Effingham.

Brief Bio
Adam Lawler is the founder of Lawler Brown. Adam is a 2004 graduate of Saint Louis University School of Law. Adam worked for a local firm until founding the Lawler Brown in 2009. Adam’s practice areas focus in Personal Injury, Business, Real Estate, Probate/Trust/Estate Administration and general litigation.

BAR ADMISSIONS:
Illinois, 2004
U.S. District Court Southern District of Illinois
U.S. District Court Central District of Illinois
U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Southern District of Illinois

EDUCATION:
Illinois, 2004
J.D., Saint Louis University School of Law, St. Louis, Missouri, 2004
B.S. (Business Economics) and B.S. (Business and Administration)
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, 2001

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND...

Liz Nohren has been practicing law for over 20 years. Her first 5 years were spent at a commercial litigation firm in Chicago, where she thrived and enjoyed the hustle and bustle of a city practice. However, Liz felt a pull to return home to the family firm in Shelbyville and join her father in practice. She remained lead counsel on a couple trials, including a construction litigation jury trial, and completed that work by commuting to Chicago for approximately 8 months after her move at the firm's request. Since moving home to Shelby County, Liz...

Brian is proud to continue the tradition of personal services performed by Brainard Law Offices LLC, the oldest law firm in Charleston. We have the advantage of years of experience, both from debtor, creditor, and trustee perspectives, which enables our firm to provide superior bankruptcy services for our clients. We believe each client deserves individual attention.

Andrew T. Flynn is a 2011 graduate of Southern Illinois University School of Law. While at SIU, Andrew was a member of the School of Law’s Trial Team that successfully competed in several national trial competitions. Prior to joining the Lawler Brown Law Firm in 2017, Andrew worked at Tetzlaff, Flynn & Associates, P.C. in Marion, while focusing on Divorce and Family Law, Guardianships and Estates, Criminal Defense, and Business Formation and Transactions.

Joe is a United States Army Veteran who founded Markell Estate Planning and Elder Law in 2014. Our firm specializes in estate planning, probate (contested and non-contested), and elder guardianships. We work with many business owners, real estate investors, and high-net-worth clients. Our business succession team is an expert in transferring legal ownership of LLCs, C-Corp, and other forms of ownership from generation to generation, seamlessly transitioning family businesses. When Joe is not helping his clients with their legal needs, he enjoys spending time with his wife and three children.

Frank H Byers, II, has practiced law in Macon County Illinois since 1977. Frank started practice with his father in the firm Byers & Byers. The firm later became known as Byers, Byers & Greenleaf. After his father retired, Frank was a partner in the law firm Fuller, Hopp, McCarthy, Quigg & Byers before he began practicing law in the firm Frank H. Byers, II, Ltd., in 1995. Frank H. Byers, II, Ltd., is a full service litigation firm appearing in state and federal courts in Illinois. The firm represents both individuals and businesses in litigation in...

Warren Benning is the owner of Law Office of Warren Benning in Springfield, IL. The focus of my practice is on Elder law and probate planning. Also, I handle consumer bankruptcies. I offer free consultations as to estate planning and Elder law matters.
My passion is to help my clients understand their options as to advance directives and estate planning.

Services We Provide Include: • Probate & Estate Planning: Estate Administration, Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Living Wills; • Business Formation & Transactional Matters: Creation of Business Entities (i.e. LLC, Corp., Partnerships) & Other Business Agreements including Mergers & Acquisitions; • Income Tax Returns: Planning & Preparation (Individuals, Partnerships, Corp., Trusts, Gift & Estate Tax, Tax-Exempt Org., Payroll & Others); and • Audits & Appeals: Representation in Problematic Tax & Regulatory Matters. • Personal Injury

Ms. Sexauer focuses her practice on probate matters, including: elder law, guardianship, estate planning, wills, trusts, and will contests. She is a member of the Chicago Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association. Stephanie speaks Spanish fluently and is regularly selected by Cook County judges to serve as a court-appointed Guardian ad Litem for disabled adults. Stephanie also serves on the Judicial Evaluation Committee of the Chicago Bar Association.

I have been practicing law for over 35 years. I graduated 3rd in my class from law school, so I had the opportunity to work at one of Chicago's largest law firms on Michigan Avenue, Ross & Hardies, right out of law school. At that time my experience was mostly in the area of personal injury law having clerked during law school for one of the nations top personal injury lawyers, Leonard M. Ring & Associates. In April of 1991 I started my own firm that has continued to prosper under the philosophy of providing, "Quality,...

I am a lifelong Chicagoland resident with a passion for helping families plan their estates so their loved ones are cared for upon their passing. I utilize wills, trusts, powers of attorney for property and healthcare, with the goal of both ensuring that assets pass to your intended loved ones and to make sure that the right people are acting on your behalf if you are unable to make decisions. For families with a recently deceased loved one, I will represent the appointed fiduciaries in administering the estate, be it probate administration or trust administration. I am licensed to practice in...

Mazyar M. Hedayat is the principal of M. Hedayat & Associates, PC, a law firm that has represented Clients for nearly 25 years in the areas of business law and litigation, bankruptcy law and litigation, real property transactions and litigation, construction law and mechanics liens, corporate law, and more. After attending the University of Chicago and University of Michigan, Mr. Hedayat received his MBA from the U.M. Ross School of Business, and his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. Mr. Hedayat is a title insurance agent and operated a full-service title company for 6 years....

Philip M. Fornaro is the managing attorney at Fornaro Law. Adopting a “never give up” attitude, Philip has become known for his ability to succeed where others fail for the last 20 years. His decision to diversify his practice in 2004 has resulted in the creation of a full service law firm which provides quality representation in a variety of legal areas. Philip follows the rule that positive energy will yield positive results. This energy is the driving force behind the success of Fornaro Law. He has become adept at creating a network and team between clients,...

Kerry Peck is the past president of the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) and founder of the Elder Law Committee of the CBA. He is also the managing partner of the Chicago law firm, Peck Ritchey, LLC, whose clients include families, hospitals, banks, the State of Illinois, County of Cook, and City of Chicago. He provides legal representation for trust and guardianship litigation, business planning, and estate planning.

Mr. Peck is well experienced in guiding his clients through the probate process, assisting in the transfer of assets and resolution of claims, and implementing estate plans. He is also very dedicated in...

Lisa A. Copland has significant experience in several areas of the law including domestic relations, civil litigation, probate, breach of contract and real estate law. She represents men and women in divorce cases, which includes division of property, allocation of parental responsibilities, child support and parenting time. Lisa routinely represents buyers and sellers in residential and commercial real estate transactions. Through the firm's full service approach, attorneys also assist clients in estate planning and civil litigation.

Melissa Fernandez (Marin) graduated from DePaul University in 2015 where she received her Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Political Science. Melissa went on to receive her law degree from DePaul University College of Law in 2019 with a certificate in Family Law where she graduated Cum Laude and maintained herself on the Dean's list for all three years. From a very young age, Melissa knew that she was passionate about family law. As a child of divorced parents, Melissa brings a unique perspective to the firm having experienced the breakdown of her family at a young age....