If you're a parent, this is the estate planning question that matters most. What happens to your children if something happens to you — and you haven't left any instructions? The answer in Illinois is one most parents never want to hear: a court decides.
What Illinois Law Says About Guardianship
When a parent dies without a will and without a surviving parent to care for the children, the Illinois court system steps in to determine who will raise them. A judge appoints a guardian — and while courts try to act in the best interest of the child, they don't know your family, your values, your concerns, or your wishes.
⚠️ Without a will, you have no voice in who raises your children. The court will hear from interested family members, review circumstances, and make a decision — but it won't be yours.
Who Might the Court Choose?
Courts generally look to close family members first — grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles. But there's no guarantee. If multiple family members come forward, there can be a contested guardianship proceeding. This means your children could be at the center of a legal dispute between people they love, at the worst possible moment in their lives.
Naming a Guardian in Your Will
Your will is the document where you name a guardian for your minor children. This is your direct instruction to the court about who you want to raise your kids — and Illinois courts give this significant weight. You can also name a successor guardian in case your first choice is unable or unwilling to serve.
When choosing a guardian, consider:
- Who shares your values and parenting approach
- Who has the capacity and willingness to raise children
- Geographic stability — will your children stay in the same community, near their school and friends?
- The guardian's own family situation and financial circumstances
- Your children's relationship with the person
What About Their Money?
Guardianship of your children's person is separate from guardianship of their financial assets. If your children inherit money or property without a trust in place, Illinois law requires those assets to be held by a court-supervised custodian until they turn 18 — at which point they receive everything outright, regardless of whether they're ready for it.
A testamentary trust inside your will — or a separate living trust — allows you to control how and when your children receive their inheritance. You can specify that funds be used for education, delay distribution until age 25 or 30, or provide for distributions at multiple milestones.
Single Parents Have the Most to Lose
If you're a single parent, this is your most urgent estate planning priority. There is no other parent to automatically step in. Without a will naming a guardian and a plan for your children's financial future, everything is left to the courts and the state's default rules. That's not a plan — it's the absence of one.
If you have children, you have every reason to do this now. Evening and weekend appointments available — we make it easy to fit into your schedule.
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Skyy Law Solutions helps parents throughout Metro East and Southwestern Illinois put plans in place that protect their children — not just their assets. Belleville, Edwardsville, O'Fallon, Swansea, Fairview Heights, Collinsville, and all surrounding communities. Flat-fee pricing, evening and weekend appointments, no surprise costs.