Emily J. Kuo
Emily J. Kuo counsels high net worth individuals and families on lifetime transfer tax reduction strategies, creates testamentary plans for clients in a broad spectrum of family situations, and represents fiduciaries in the administration of decedents’ estates and trusts. For over 20 years, she has worked closely with family offices and wealth advisors to implement planning techniques and find practical solutions in sensitive circumstances. She has extensive experience in federal estate tax compliance and related post-mortem planning. Family offices rely on her federal expertise to structure plans across multiple generations and family branches, with assistance from local state counsel.
A frequent lecturer at professional education events, Emily was elected as a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel in 2012. In 2010, she was elected as a Member of the Leading Lawyers Network (rated in the top 5% of Illinois lawyers and recommended in the practice area of “Trust, Will & Estate Planning Law”). She was selected as Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Gordon J. Quist of the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, for his 1997-98 term.
Emily is admitted to practice in Illinois and is a member of the American Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, and the Chicago Bar Association.
Practice Areas
Education
- University of Chicago Law School, J.D., 1997
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.S., with highest distinction, Business Administration, 1994
Organizations
Admissions
Awards & Honors
Speeches & Publications
TREATISES
Louis S. Harrison and Emily J. Kuo, “United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Returns,” Illinois Estate Administration (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2019 edition, 2014 edition, 2011 supplement, 2009 edition, 2006 supplement, and 2003 edition).
Louis S. Harrison and Emily J. Kuo, “Attorneys' Fees: An Assessment of the Current Standards for Fee Awards,” Litigating Disputed Estates, Trusts, Guardianships and Charitable Bequests (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2016 edition, 2012 edition, 2009 edition, and 2002 edition).
ARTICLES
"Duty of Loyalty: Hold on to Your Hat," Estate Planning Course Materials Journal (ALI CLE, June 2017)
Louis S. Harrison and Emily J. Kuo, "Virtual Partners," Trusts & Estates (Mar. 2010).
SPEECHES
"QPRT, Interrupted," 45th Annual Notre Dame Tax and Estate Planning Institute , South Bend, Indiana (Sept. 27, 2019)
"Forms 709 & 706: Practice Tips and Pitfalls," Basics of Preparing and Understanding Tax Returns , Chicago, Illinois (Chicago Estate Planning Council, Jan. 25, 2017)
"Duty of Loyalty: Hold on to Your Hat" (presented as member of panel on "Ethics and Duty: From Investment Management Agreements to Trusts"), Representing Estate and Trust Beneficiaries and Fiduciaries, Chicago, Illinois (ALI CLE, July 8, 2016)
"Common Problems on Gift and Estate Tax Returns," Basics of Preparing and Understanding Tax Returns, Chicago, Illinois (Chicago Estate Planning Council, Jan. 27, 2016)
"FAQs in Gift Tax Return Preparation," Basics of Preparing and Understanding Tax Returns, Chicago, Illinois (Chicago Estate Planning Council, Jan. 28, 2015)
"Form 706: The Federal Estate Tax Return," Gift & Estate Tax: Forms 706 & 709, Palatine, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Dec. 9, 2014)
"Trouble-Shooting Federal Gift Tax Compliance," Trouble-Shooting Federal Gift, Estate and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Compliance, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois CPA Society, Dec. 3, 2014)
"Attorney's Fees - What’s Reasonable and Who Pays?," Representing Estate and Trust Beneficiaries and Fiduciaries, Chicago, Illinois (ALI CLE, July 24, 2014)
"Lifetime Giving Techniques," Estate Tax Planning for Experienced Practitioners, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Jan. 16, 2014)
"Gift Tax Compliance: The Hot List," Basic Estate Planning Course – I, Chicago, Illinois (Chicago Estate Planning Council, Nov. 7, 2013)
"Form 706: The Federal Estate Tax Return," Gift & Estate Tax Workshop: Forms 706 & 709, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Oct. 31, 2012)
"Form 706: The Federal Estate Tax Return," Gift & Estate Tax Workshop: Forms 706 & 709, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Dec. 15, 2011)
"Attorneys' Fees," Contested Estates and Trusts, Springfield, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Nov. 5, 2010)
"Federal Estate Tax Considerations," 6 Keys for Effective Illinois Estate Administration, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Feb. 26, 2010)
"Form 706: The Federal Estate Tax Return," Gift & Estate Tax Workshop: Forms 706 & 709, Chicago, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Jan. 22, 2010)
"Federal Estate Tax Considerations," Probate for the Taxable Estate, Champaign, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, June 18, 2008)
"Federal Estate Tax Considerations," Illinois Estate Administration - Preventing Problems in Probate, Springfield, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, June 15, 2007)
"Federal Estate and Gift Tax Considerations," Handling the Probate Maze: Illinois Estate Administration, Champaign, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, June 23, 2006)
"Federal Estate and Gift Tax Considerations," Handling the Probate Maze: Illinois Estate Administration, Urbana, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, June 9, 2005)
"Fees in Estates and Trusts," Estate, Trust, and Guardianship Litigation: the Course, Springfield, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, Sept. 8, 2004)
"Federal Estate and Gift Tax Considerations," Illinois Estate Administration: Process and Practice, Springfield, Illinois (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, June 12, 2003)
OTHER ATTORNEYS
Louis S. Harrison
Partner
Robert S. Held
Partner
Marc H. Schwartz
Managing Partner
Jason S. Ornduff
Managing Partner
Timothy G. Carroll
Partner
Thomas B. Shapira
Managing Partner
Robert T. Napier
Partner
Brian K. Jones
Partner
Jonathan E. Strouse
Partner
Mary-Ann Wilson
Partner
Frances H. Krasnow
Partner
Michael C. Craven
Partner
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