Max Elliott

Founder and Managing Attorney

Maximillienne “Max” Elliott, our firm’s Founder and Managing Attorney, practices with the compassion and sensitivity required to maintain family harmony for our estate planning and probate clients and authenticity and pragmatism for our small business clients. She is licensed to practice in the State of Illinois and has represented clients with taxable and non-taxable estates, challenging negotiations, multi-jurisdictional probate matters, guardianship involving minors and disabled persons, and family-owned business planning. With clients whose interests span the globe, Max’s current focus is on international estate planning.

Max routinely speaks to lawyers, students, and community groups. She is a staunch supporter of marriage equality, was elated to celebrate the Supreme Court’s historic ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges that established marriage equality across the nation for all LGBTQ+ couples, and is now advocating for gender-affirming care.

Max is Chair of the Chicago Bar Association’s Trust Law Committee, a volunteer faculty member for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE), Content Advisory Board Member and faculty for Lawline – a Manhattan-based CLE provider for attorneys nationwide, and Chicago Estate Planning Council member.

Before launching her practice, Max was a law clerk in a boutique tax litigation firm, assisting the principal in probate, domestic relations, corporate records, non-profit corporation compliance, and estate planning.

In addition to her legal experience, Max has more than 20 years of non-legal employment experience, including many years in the American Bar Association’s International Liaison Office in the President’s Office and several years with Fortune 500 companies.

Throughout the years, she has also assisted entrepreneurs in creating viable business planning solutions. This experience served Max well as General Counsel for 6 years of The Bernie Mac Foundation, which included spearheading the organization’s most important restructuring.

Max has received numerous awards for her commitment to the community and is an active volunteer member and has served on important legislative task forces in collaboration between many legal organizations, including the Chicago Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association.

Also, because of her strong commitment to public service, she also supports Chicago Women’s Health Center (CWHC), a women’s medical collaborative center providing healthcare services to women living alternative lifestyles and those in the LGBTQ community; Marillac St. Vincent, which serves low income families throughout Chicago; MetroSquash, an organization that shepherds inner city youth from grade school to college, and the DePaul Law Black Alumni Foundation.

Living in Chicago, Max is happily married with 2 charming stepsons and a darling niece.