Derek M. Johnson 

Phone: 630-572-0900 
Fax: 630-572-0905
Email: DJohnson@BellockCoogan.com
 
Derek is an attorney with the law firm of Bellock & Coogan, Ltd.  Derek joined Bellock & Coogan, Ltd in 2014.  Prior to joining the firm, Derek graduated with distinction from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002.  In 2007, Derek received his law degree with Honors from the Chicago-Kent College of Law. 

Derek began his legal career in 2007 at a mid-sized suburban law firm where he worked on a wide range of litigation and transactional matters, including trusts and estate planning, corporate transactions and litigation, general commercial litigation, and commercial and residential real estate transactions and litigation.  As time passed and Derek gained a wide range of legal experience, Derek realized his passion lay in the areas of trusts and estate planning and corporate law.  In 2014, Derek joined Bellock & Coogan, Ltd. to devote his legal career to trusts and estate planning, corporate law, and other related areas.

In his free time, Derek enjoys exercising, exploring new music and movies, and spending time with his family and friends.  Derek and his wife have a young son who seems to have an endless amount of energy and has quite the T-Ball swing, and a young daughter whose smile and laugh melts their hearts.
 
Areas of Practice
  • Estate Planning
  • Probate Estate & Trust Administration
  • Business Succession Planning
  • Business Organization & Transactions
  • Contract Review & Drafting
 
Bar Admissions
  • Illinois, 2007
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 2007
 
Education
  • Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent College of Law, Chicago, Illinois
    • J.D. (with Honors) - 2007
  • University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
    • B.S. (Graduated with Distinction) - 2002
    • Major: Anthropology
 
Representative Matters
  • IRS Priv. Ltr. Rul. 201116002 (Apr. 22, 2011): obtained a private letter ruling from the IRS granting relief for late election of qualified subchapter S trust under Section 1361 of the Internal Revenue Code
  • Salce v. Saracco, 409 Ill. App. 3d 977, 949 N.E. 2d 284 (2d Dist. 2011): successful appellate defense of two shareholders against a third shareholder who filed suit in attempts to demand a capital call under the parties’ shareholder agreement for the payment of outstanding loans. 
 
Representative Classes/Seminars
  • Lecturer, DuPage County Bar Association Estate Planning & Probate Committee:
         “Let’s Go Fishing: Citation Proceedings In Probate Cases (755 ILCS 5/16 et seq.)” (June 27, 2013)
 
Representative Published Works
  • Derek M. Johnson, Debts, Secret Tax Liens, and Other Estate Traps, Illinois Bar Journal, Vol. 106, No. 10 (Oct. 2018).
  • Derek M. Johnson, Income Tax Consequences for Probate Estates When Resolving Claims for Less Than the Full Amount, Illinois State Bar Association, Trusts & Estates Section Newsletter, Vol. 65, No. 3 (Sept. 2018)
  • Kimberly S. Coogan, Carrie M. Buddingh & Derek M. Johnson, To Port . . . Or Not To Port?, DCBA Brief, Vol. 28, Issue 10 (June 2016)
  • Derek M. Johnson, Illinois’ Health Care Agency Laws: A Hierarchical Game Of Who’s On First, DCBA Brief, Vol. 25, Issue 6 (March 2013)
 
Professional Associations and Memberships
  • Illinois State Bar Association, Member (including Trusts & Estates and Real Property sections)
  • DuPage County Bar Association, Member (including Estate Planning & Probate section)
  • DuPage County Estate Planning Council, Member
 
Past Employment PositionsRathje & Woodward, LLC, Associate Attorney, 2007 - 2014