Christine A. Barone She/Her

Principal

Christine Barone, a Principal in the Estate Planning & Asset Protection and Estate & Trust Administration & Litigation practice groups, finds the most rewarding aspect of assisting and representing her clients is alleviating some of the burden that they feel in extremely stressful and overwhelming situations. She has the knowledge and skills to assist clients step-by-step to try to confront concerns and worries that are often life altering. She understands that communication is critical to an attorney-client relationship and will sit down and discuss the various outcomes and scenarios so that her clients can not only make informed decisions, but also feel a sense of relief.

Overview

Christine focuses her practice on elder law. This encompasses contested and uncontested adult guardianships, decedents’ estates, trust administration and litigation, estate planning and asset protection. Notably, she handles planning for those with disabilities or special needs and long-term care planning for eligibility and appeals for Medicaid benefits. She has also represented nursing homes in securing and appealing Medicaid benefits for their residents and claims for payment from the State in the Illinois Court of Claims. She prepares and reviews contracts, wills, trusts, special needs trusts and powers of attorney.

Oftentimes, these matters are sensitive and nerve-wracking. Christine is devoted to understanding each client’s goals and expectations through informed discussions in order for her to exceed those expectations as their attorney. Client service and communication is everything to her. The reason she practices in this area of the law is to guide clients through the confusion of the unexpected, traumatic and difficult decisions and processes that often accompany caring for an aging or disabled loved one. She ensures that her clients are always informed and confident with their relationship and communication.

Christine is a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA), which is an exclusive honor bestowed on a select group of attorneys by the National Elder Law Foundation. To date, there are only 13 CELAs in Illinois providing resourceful and inspired solutions for clients faced with elder law issues. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. She is a former president and current board member of the Veterans’ Legal Aid Society. Christine also serves on Chuhak & Tecson’s Professional Education Committee.

When away from the office, Christine is quite busy with her young family, enjoying family trips to water parks, camping and the zoo. In those rare few minutes to herself, she appreciates running for her mental and physical health and tries to squeeze it in whenever she can.

Credentials

Education
Loyola University Chicago School of Law
University of Iowa, 2009

Bar Admissions
Illinois, 2013

Memberships & Associations
  • National Elder Law Foundation, Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA)
  • National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Member
  • Veterans’ Legal Aid Society, Board member and former president (2018)
Noteworthy
  • Emerging Lawyer, selected by Leading Lawyers (2023 – 2024)
Community Involvement
  • Women Helping Women, ambassador
Lectures/Speaking Engagements
  • A Guardian’s Duty to Pursue Benefits: Medicaid Planning in Guardianship CVLS (2022)
  • Mock Medicaid Appeal – IICLE Elder Law Short Course (October 2020)
  • Power of Attorney/Guardianship Seminar – Artis Senior Living, Bartlett, IL (June 2022)
  • Qualifying Asset Transfers: Which Techniques Work: Medicaid Planning – NBI, Inc., Naperville, IL (October 2019)
  • Ethics: Drafting Wills and Trusts – NBI, Inc., Naperville, IL (February 2019)