Robert T. Napier helps a wide range of clients protect their wealth and families through creative, but conservative, estate planning. He represents individuals, families, foundations, closely-held corporations, and fiduciaries.

Mr. Napier has administered countless estates that range from simple to complex with some involving contentious beneficiaries.

Mr. Napier has received Martindale-Hubbell’s AV Preeminent® ranking and has been named a Leading Lawyer.

Mr. Napier joined Harrison & Held in 2012 after managing his own Chicago law firm, Robert T. Napier and Associates, P.C., for nearly 20 years.

Affiliations

  • Member of the Estate Planning Council of Naples
  • Past President of the Greater North Shore Estate and Financial Planning Council
  • Columnist for Trusts & Estates
  • Director of Friends of the USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72 (www.ussabe.org)
  • Planned Giving Committee of The Hadley Institute for the Blind (www.hadley.edu)
  • Planned Giving Committee of the Ravinia Festival (www.ravinia.org)
  • Member of the Chicago Estate Planning Council
  • Member of the Collier County Bar Association
  • Illinois PGA – Independent Director
  • Former trustee for his community library
  • Former trustee of Allendale Association

Speeches and Publications

Mr. Napier has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal and published in Barron’s magazine. He has lectured for the Chicago Bar Association, IICLE, and the Illinois CPA Society. He has addressed numerous business and civic groups, acted as a defense expert witness, and published the following articles:

  • Estate Tax: It Could Be Worse (Barron’s, May 29, 2017)
  • Private Foundations and Donor Advised Funds (Trust & Estates, June 2014)
  • The 3.8 Percent Healthcare Tax (Trust & Estates, December 2013)
  • Exodus: The Art of Domicile (Trust & Estates, June 2013)
  • GRAT Expectations (Trust & Estates, Sept. 2010)
  • Kill the CRT’s (Trusts & Estates, December 2009)
  • The Safety GRAT (Illinois State Bar Association: Trusts & Estates, June 2009, Vol. 55, No. 8)
  • Cookie Jars and Charitable Remainder Trusts – Built to be Broken Into? (Taxation of Exempts, Sept-Oct 2005)

Education

DePaul University College of Law, J.D., 1987
Certified Public Accountant, 1986
Marquette University, B.S., Salutatorian, 1984

Admissions

State Bar of Florida, 2015
State Bar of Michigan, 2004
Northern District of Illinois, 2001
Supreme Court of the United States, 2001
Illinois Supreme Court, 1987
U.S. District Court, 1987