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MacKenzie A. Hyde

Member
fax +1 312.985.5978

MacKenzie A. Hyde litigates contested guardianships, estates, and trusts on behalf of individuals and financial institutions.

MacKenzie represents corporations and individuals in their fiduciary capacities (i.e., trustee, executor, administrator, guardian, agent under powers of attorney) as well as estate and trust beneficiaries in matters involving claims of breach of fiduciary duty, undue influence, lack of capacity, fraud, duress, and negligence. MacKenzie also prosecutes and defends actions involving powers of attorneys, petitions for guardianship for adults with disabilities, and pre-death estate contests.

MacKenzie helps clients avoid litigation by advising them on estate planning techniques that will help their estate plans avoid being subject to such litigation during their lifetime or after their death.

MacKenzie advises fiduciaries (i.e., trustee, executor, administrator, guardian, agent under powers of attorney) on their duties during trust and estate administration.

MacKenzie is frequently appointed by judges in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County to serve as a Guardian Ad Litem in disabled estates as well as counsel for alleged disabled persons.

Education

J.D., Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Chicago, Illinois
B.A., summa cum laude, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona

Recognitions

Super Lawyers’ Illinois Risings Stars, 2013-Present

Featured in Emerging Lawyers Magazine, a distinction earned by fewer than two percent of lawyers licensed to practice law in Illinois who are under 40 years of age or have been practicing for 10 years or less.

Memberships

Chicago Bar Association

Past Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Continuing Legal Education Committee

Past Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Elder Law Committee

State Bar Licenses

Illinois

Reported Cases:

  • In re Estate of Nina L., A Minor, 2016 Ill.App. LEXIS 701 (September 16, 2015) (vacating the trial court’s order and making the necessary findings of fact to allow client, Nina L., an undocumented immigrant, to file for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, a case of first impression)
  • In re Estate of Donald Howell, 2015 Ill.App. LEXIS 466 (June 19, 2015) (reversing to allow client, the Guardian of the Estate, to propose an estate plan that deviates from intestacy for a disabled person who never had testamentary capacity in case of first impression)
  • Pontarelli v. Pontarelli, 2015 Ill.App. LEXIS 191 (March 18, 2015) (affirming multiple interlocutory orders in favor of client)

Unreported Case:

  • In re Estate of Joel Kaplan, 2018 IL App (1st) 170540-U (June 29, 2018) (affirming plenary adjudication of Respondent and appointment of clients as plenary Co-Guardians)
Media
Presentations
  • “Trusts and Powers of Attorney in Guardianship Estates,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education’s 2021 Guardianship Institute, August 2021
  • Presenter, “Guardianship in Cook County: Practical Insights and Observations from Experienced Practitioners,” October 2020
  • Presenter, “Legal Planning and Preparation in the Time of COVID,” May 2020
  • Presenter, “How to Handle Mental Health Issues of Clients and Beneficiaries,” The Center for Conflict Resolution’s Elder Care and Probate Mediation Training, June 2019
  • Presenter, “How to Handle Mental Health Issues of Clients and Beneficiaries,” DuPage County Estate Planning Council, April 2019
  • Presenter, “Pleading in Probate Litigation,” The Chicago Bar Association’s program on Contested Matters In Probate Estates, November 2018
  • Presenter, “Discovery Issues in Guardianships,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education’s 14th Annual Elder Law Short Course, October 2018
  • Co-Presenter, “Will and Trust Contests: Drafting Techniques in Pleadings,” American Law Institute course Representing Estate and Trust Beneficiaries and Fiduciaries, July 2018
  • Presenter, “Dealing with Decision-Makers in a Health Care Setting: Identifying Red Flags and Avoiding Pitfalls,” Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, July 2018
  • Co-Presenter, “Clinical Boot Camp: Common Psychiatric Diagnoses Facing Our Clients,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education’s 13th Annual Elder Law Short Course, December 2017
  • Presenter, “The Illinois Power of Attorney Act and Guardianship,” to students earning their Masters degrees at Loyola University Chicago School of Social Work, November 2017
  • Co-Presenter, “Dealing with Decision-Makers in a Health Care Setting: Identifying Red Flags and Avoiding Pitfalls” to students earning their Masters degrees at Loyola University’s Summer Institute on Aging, May 2017

The Clark Hill approach is equally pragmatic and growth-minded, which is why we understand our clients’ toughest business challenges. Our multidisciplinary, global team of advisors focuses on smart legal solutions, delivered simply.

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