David M. Lutrey - Lake Forest, IL

Overview

Litigation Practice: David M. Lutrey is a partner of the Lake Forest law firm of Lesser Lutrey Pasquesi & Howe, LLP. For the past 20 years, Mr. Lutrey has counseled individuals and corporate fiduciaries as a seasoned litigation attorney in the areas of trusts, estates, probate and guardianships. He appears regularly in various trial courts including Lake, Cook and McHenry Counties as well as Federal District Court.

Proven Trial Achievement: Adding to his numerous trial victories, Mr. Lutrey's recent $1,000,000 undue influence award in the Circuit Court of the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit in Lake County was affirmed on appeal in January of 2017, in the Estate of Augusta Gershman, deceased.

Proven Appellate Achievement: Among his many appeals, Mr. Lutrey argued before the Second District Court of Appeals in the Estate of Weiland (2003), establishing the standard of proof for pay on death accounts in Illinois and in the Estate of Walsh (2012), establishing presumptions regarding claims in a decedent's estate.

Expert Witness: Mr. Lutrey serves as an expert witness and consultant in matters concerning trusts and estates, including the application of industry practices, scope of fiduciary duties and propriety of fiduciary fees.

Represents Individuals and Corporate Fiduciaries. In addition to representing individuals and corporate fiduciaries in their capacities as trustee, executor, guardian or agent, Mr. Lutrey also represents financial institutions in their individual capacities with regard to the creation and implementation of trust and estate policy manuals, risk management strategies and employee training.

Estate Planning Practice: Mr. Lutrey spends equal time assisting individuals in the creation of wills, trusts and other estate planning documents that preserve and transfer meaningful legacies. Mr. Lutrey's approach to estate planning includes participating in hand-picked professional networks that offer a complete estate planning perspective integrated with the client's financial, insurance and accounting representatives. In addition to using creative and proven tax planning strategies, Mr. Lutrey draws on his considerable experience with trust and estate litigation and administration to prepare reliable and flexible plans to meet client needs.

Drafted Trust Legislation: In April of 2014, the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) appointed Mr. Lutrey to his seventh term on the Trusts and Estates Section Council's Legislation Committee. In this capacity, Mr. Lutrey has worked with the Chicago Bar Association, the Illinois Bankers Association and other professional groups in the development of Illinois statutes affecting the areas of probate, trusts, estates, guardianships and elder law. Most recently, Mr. Lutrey participated in the drafting of Illinois statutes relating to Trust Decanting and Directed Trusts both of which were signed into law in August of 2012 and has been involved in the Chicago Bar Association's creation of a proposed Illinois Trust Code that would modernize the law of trusts in our state.

Law Professor and Educator: Mr. Lutrey is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel ("ACTEC") and Litigation Counsel of America ("LCA"), was an adjunct trust and estate professor at Loyola Law School in Chicago from 2012 - 2015 and served on the legal education and outreach committees of the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education's Estate Planning Short Course from 2009-2016. He is a member of the ISBA's Trusts and Estates Section Council and the Chicago Estate Planning Council. He is a Past President of the Lake County Estate Planning Council and recently completed his fifth consecutive term as Chair of the Lake County Bar Association's Trusts and Estates Committee. In these capacities, Mr. Lutrey has organized a number of seminars designed to educate lawyers on matters pertaining to trusts, estates, probate and guardianships.

Thirteen Years of Speaking and Writing: Mr. Lutrey is himself a frequent speaker (as shown below) on topics related to estate planning, administration and litigation for the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education ("IICLE"), the Chicago Bar Association ("CBA"), the Chicago Estate Planning Council ("CEPC"), the Illinois State Bar Association ("ISBA") and the Lake County Bar Association ("LCBA") as well as numerous financial institutions. In addition, Mr. Lutrey was a contributing author of the Southern Illinois University Law Journal's Survey of Illinois Law: Trusts and Estates published in Volume 39, Summer 2015, and has written numerous articles for the Illinois State Bar Association and Lake County Bar Association's bar journals.

Exemplary Peer Ratings. Mr. Lutrey is rated "AV" by both the bar and judiciary according to Martindale Hubbell. He was selected by Thompson Reuters as a "Super Lawyer" for the years 2014 through the present and selected by the Law Bulletin Publishing Group as a "Leading Lawyer" for the years 2016 through the present.

Education. Mr. Lutrey earned his Juris Doctorate from DePaul College of Law and his Masters Degree in Business Administration from the Kellstadt Graduate School of Management in 1996 with an emphasis in financial investments, tax and other areas related to wealth planning.