← Estate-planning options and fees

HLG estate-planning guides · Illinois & Missouri

Wills, guardians, and your family’s next chapter

A useful estate-planning conversation starts with people, not forms. Who do you trust to handle your affairs, who should receive your property, and what would you want for your children?

What a will can do

A will can identify who receives property governed by the will and nominate the person who will handle the estate. It can also nominate a guardian for minor children, although the court makes the appointment. Both the Illinois State Bar Association’s guide and the Missouri Bar’s probate guide describe these roles.

At your planning session, we can discuss who should serve, who would be a suitable backup, and whether the person managing money should be different from the person caring for children. You do not have to settle every decision before the first meeting.

What a will does not handle by itself

A will generally does not override a beneficiary designation or control property already held in a trust or passing by survivorship. It also does not authorize someone to handle your financial or medical decisions during your lifetime. These are separate planning questions, as explained in the ISBA estate-planning overview.

This is why we ask about your accounts, insurance, existing documents, and family circumstances together. A will-centered plan should be considered alongside the other arrangements that affect your wishes.

Decisions to bring to your consultation

• People: Who are the important people in your life, and who do you trust to take responsibility?
• Children: Who would you nominate as a guardian, and have you discussed that possibility with them?
• Property: What do you own, how is it titled, and which accounts already have beneficiaries?
• Timing: Should beneficiaries receive property outright, or do you want to discuss ongoing management?
• Existing obligations: Bring any relevant prior estate plan, divorce agreement, or prenuptial agreement for review.

When life changes, revisit the plan

Marriage, divorce, children, changes in assets or named decision-makers, and a move to another state are reasons to review an existing will. The Missouri Bar’s guide recommends review after these kinds of changes; a move does not mean you should assume every document must automatically be replaced.

For Illinois and Missouri clients, Hunsinger Law Group can review the facts and explain what should be kept, updated, or prepared. We confirm the scope and fee before you retain us for that work.

Hunsinger Law Group, LLC · Attorney advertising. General information, not legal advice. State law and individual circumstances matter. Contacting the firm does not by itself establish an attorney-client relationship. Reviewed by Zach Hunsinger September 24, 2026.