In Illinois, to be valid, a will must be signed by the testator in the presence of two witnesses. The Hearing Board, affirmed by the Review Board, found that the lawyer had had his employees falsely state that they had witnessed an elderly client sign his 2005 and 2006 wills. The Review Board explained: “Respondent prepared three wills for Robert Kelly; one in January 2005, one in April 2005, and one in September 2006. The Administrator alleged, and the Hearing Board found, that Respondent directed his employees to falsely attest to the January 2005 will and to the September 2006 will knowing that the employees were not present when the will was executed by Kelly.”
The Review Board recommended a sanction of one year for that and other misconduct.
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