Using Mediation to Stem the Tide of Litigation in the Ocean of Family Wealth Transfers - Dispute Resolution Journal - Vol. 59, No. 4

Roselyn L. Friedman is a partner with the law firm of Sachnoff & Weaver, Ltd. in Chicago where she chairs the estate and wealth transfer group. She is also a mediator, focusing on disputes relating to trusts, estates and family businesses, and she is a frequent speaker on the topic of using mediation in estate planning. Among other affiliations, Ms. Friedman is a fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and a volunteer mediator for the Center for Conflict Resolution, an Illinois not-for-profit organization.

Erica E. Lord is an associate with the estate and wealth transfer group at Sachnoff & Weaver, Ltd. Her practice concentrates primarily on estate planning and trust and estate administration.

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Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

Between 1998 and 2052, an estimated $41 trillion of wealth will be transferred in the United States as the baby-boomer generation ages and dies.1 Even after subtracting $17 trillion for estate taxes, charitable bequests, and estate settlement expenses, baby-boomers will transfer nearly $25 trillion to younger generations. Some of this wealth will be transferred amicably, according to predictable and well-crafted estate plans. Other wealth transfers, however, will be contrary to the expectations of the baby-boomer’s children and grandchildren, breeding conflict and generating trust and estate litigation.