James Lestikow Named “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers®

CHICAGO, IL. – James M. Lestikow, partner in Hinshaw’s Springfield office, was named a “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers®. Mr. Lestikow received the honor in both the “Trusts and Estates” and “Litigation – Trusts and Estates” categories.

Best Lawyers® names a single lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan area as the “Lawyer of the Year.” Those honored are selected based on particularly impressive voting averages received during the peer-review assessments that Best Lawyers® conducts with thousands of leading lawyers each year. Receiving this designation reflects the high level of respect a lawyer has earned among other leading lawyers in the same communities and the same practice areas for their abilities, their professionalism, and their integrity.

Mr. Lestikow’s estate planning and wealth preservation practice includes the drafting of wills and trusts, family limited partnerships and other devices that help clients achieve their financial goals in the most tax efficient manner and protect their assets for retirement and the next generation. He also handles estate and trust administration, as well as handling estate and trust administration disputes through alternate dispute resolution or through litigation in court and has testified as an expert witness on duties of executors / trustees, fees of executors and trustees and in attorney malpractice cases. Reflecting his substantial estate planning experience, he was elected to Fellowship in the prestigious American College of Trust and Estate Counsel in 2001, and in 2006 was appointed a member of its Asset Protection Committee. He holds a J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law and a B.S. from Northern Illinois University.