Ilene L McCauley
Legal expertise with a human touch.
Ilene L. McCauley has been a member of the State Bar of Arizona since 1982. She has been certified by the Arizona Board of Legal Specialization as a Certified Specialist in Taxation since 1983. She was named “Top Estate Planning Attorney” in the Valley 2011 through 2019 and has a “superb” rating from AVVO since 2015.
Ms. McCauley is a member of Wealth Counsel. She was selected by the Tax Advisory Commission to serve an appointment on the Tax Advisory Commission of the State Bar of Arizona. She was formerly appointed to the position of Adjunct Professor at the Estate and Wealth Strategies Institute at Michigan State University and has taught advanced tax, business, and estate planning courses via the internet.
Ms. McCauley earned her BA from Binghamton University; her JD from Hofstra University School of Law; her LLM (Masters of Law in Taxation) from DePaul University School of Law and her second post-doctoral degree in Advanced Tax and Estate Planning from the Esperti-Peterson Institute.
- Estate Planning
- Guardianship & Conservatorship, Health Care Directives, Trusts, Wills
- Probate
- Probate Administration, Probate Litigation, Will Contests
- Business Law
- Business Contracts, Business Dissolution, Business Finance, Business Formation, Business Litigation, Franchising, Mergers & Acquisitions, Partnership & Shareholder Disputes
- Tax Law
- Business Taxes, Criminal Tax Litigation, Estate Tax Planning, Income Taxes, International Taxes, Payroll Taxes, Property Taxes, Sales Taxes, Tax Appeals, Tax Audits, Tax Planning
- Credit Cards Accepted
- Arizona
- State Bar of Arizona
- U.S. Supreme Court
- English
- Ilene L. McCauley Ltd.
- Current
- Hofstra University
- J.D.
- DePaul University
- LL.M. | Masters of Law in Taxation
- Top Lawyers 2020
- North Valley Magazine
- Best Probate Attorneys in Scottsdale
- Expertise
- State Bar of Arizona
- Member
- Current
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- Wealth Counsel
- Member
- Current
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- Certified Specialist in Tax Law
- Arizona Board of Legal Specialization
- Website
- Ilene L. McCauley, Ltd.
- Q. My mom died and her husband died 10 months later. The home they had was in both names.
- A: I am so sorry for you loss. This may not seem like it, but it is a very complicated question. As your mother's child, you have legal rights. However your rights are limited by choices your mother may have made with her husband. I recommend you go to an attorney in your area to get the answer to your question. You need to bring a copy of the deed to your appointment. If you cannot find the deed yourself the attorney will be able to find it. I would also recommend you get a copy of your mother's Last Will if she made one. Also she and her husband may have created a trust as well. If there is a trust, the attorney needs to review that as well. Your rights will be defined by the deeds, the Will, the Trust and how your mother and her husband owned their property. The lawyer will help you through this maze.
- Q. Both my sister and I are joint executors on my dad’s estate. My sister is asking me to re-move/RE-enunciate myself?
- A: I am so sorry for your loss. This question says to me, that there are difficulties here. Once both you are appointed as Co-Executors of an estate, both of you should generally remain as Co-Executors of the estate, unless there are serious problems or concerns. Your email does not list the reason your sister is asking you to step down. Can you tell me her reasoning? Also, the attorney you are working with needs to be involved in this process. What does your attorney say?
- Q. Co-trustee and current beneficiary wants to resign and make me Trustee of Land trust - I'm successor and 2nd beneficiary
- A: I am so sorry for your loss. This sounds like quite a difficult process. I don't want to give you any advice, based upon what you wrote. Here is what I think you need to do: 1. Determine the value of the real estate, and whether or not the real estate is in the trust to determine if it makes sense to move forward. A realtor in that location would be helpful. 2. Determine the value of any liens or mortgages. 3. Set up a consultation with an attorney in the county where the property is located. Send the attorney a copy of the Trust and your family tree before the meeting. Also send copies of the tax bills on the real estate. You and the attorney will then work out the next steps.
