Overview
David A. Herpe counsels high-net-worth families, family offices, business owners, executives and individuals on all aspects of sophisticated estate and wealth transfer planning. He advises clients on the preparation, administration and construction of wills and trusts, charitable gift planning, private trust companies, formation and operation of private foundations, formation and reorganization of closely held corporations, partnerships and limited liability companies (LLCs), complex insurance planning, leveraged wealth transfer techniques and family-owned business succession planning.
David is an author of and contributor to several books on estate and financial planning and has contributed numerous articles to industry and legal journals. He is a past member of the editorial advisory board of Trust and Estates.
David has served on the faculty of the American Bankers Association National Trust Schools and has spoken on tax and estate planning topics for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, the Notre Dame Tax & Estate Planning Institute, the Iowa Trust Association, the Duke University Annual Estate Planning Conference, the University of Denver Advanced Estate Planning Symposium, the Florida Legal Education Association, the Kentucky Institute on Federal Taxation, the New York State Bar Association Trusts & Estates Institute, and the California CPA Society, as well as other local and national professional groups.
Recognitions
- Chambers High Net Worth, Band 2 in Illinois: Private Wealth and USA Nationwide: Private Wealth, Central Region, 2016–2023
- Chambers USA, Wealth Management, 2011–2016
- Best Lawyers in America, Trusts and Estates, Chicago, 1999–2025
- Legal 500 US 2016
- Illinois Super Lawyers
- Illinois Leading Lawyers
- Who’s Who in America
- Who’s Who in American Law
Community
- Chicago Estate Planning Council, past president
- American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, fellow
- WTTW 11/WFMT Planned Giving Advisory Committee
- Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, Legacies and Endowments Advisory Committee
- American Cancer Society (Illinois Division), Planned Giving Committee
- United Charities of Metropolitan Chicago, Planned Giving Committee
- The Arthritis Foundation (Illinois Chapter), Planned Giving Committee, past member
Credentials
Education
University of Chicago Law School, JD, cum laude, Order of the Coif, 1978
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, BA, magna cum laude, 1975
Admissions
Illinois
Courts/Agencies
US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
US Tax Court
Illinois Supreme Court
