Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

Generally, no, the proceeds of life insurance are not an asset of his estate liable for claims. Insurance is based on contract, whereby premiums were paid for the proceeds to be paid to another party and do not belong to the insured. There are also specific exemptions that allow you to keep those proceeds against your own creditors, so you may not need to use them to pay joint liabilities either. All of this is important enough that you should not be relying on a site like this, but should be speaking with a probate attorney.