Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

Re: I do not wish to be the beneficiary of a will

You can discliam the proceeds of a bequest under a will. The disclaimer has to be filed on a timely basis, it needs to be a valid disclaimer under state probate law (the law controlling the passing of property from the deceased to their heirs), and it will need to be attached to the estate's tax return.

If your children are minors, then you will need to establish a trust or account for them that will not cause ownership of the money to be attributed back to you. You will also want to have the money be available for their wel-being and necessities if you can't provide for them yourself. In many cases, the best way to do this is to establish a trust.

All these questions depend upon the age of the children, the amount of money in question, whether or not there are issues concerning your estate that might make it taxable, and many other transfer tax issues.

You really need a good estate tax attorney to work through these issues with you.