Kristine L. Havlik is special counsel with Foley & Lardner LLP. A member of the Estates & Trusts Practice, she focuses on business succession planning, asset protection planning and complex estate planning. Ms. Havlik has extensive experience on counseling clients regarding estate planning, minimization of estate taxes and charitable giving, and has drafted numerous estate plans, including wills, trusts, powers of attorney, living wills, marital property agreements and other estate planning arrangements. Ms. Havlik is also very experienced in estate and trust administration, including probate, preparation of estate tax returns, funding of trusts, estate tax audits, fiduciary income tax preparation and advising personal representatives and trustees. Ms. Havlik served a judicial clerkship with the Hon. Robert D. Martin, chief bankruptcy judge for the Western District of Wisconsin (1999-2000), before joining the firm.
She is a 1999 graduate of the University of Virginia Law School and earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1996 from the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire, where she received the College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Student Award.
Ms. Havlik is the co-author of "Attitude Adjustment" in the April 2005 issue of Trusts & Estates. She is also the current president of the board of directors of The Women's Center, past president of the board of directors for Wild Space Dance Company, a member of the board of directors of the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire Alumni Association and of First Stage Children's Theater, as well as a member of the Children's Hospital and Health System Planned Giving Council. Ms. Havlik is also a member of the Milwaukee Estate Planning Forum, Waukesha County Estate Planning Council, Partnership for Philanthropic Planning of Eastern Wisconsin, Association for Women Lawyers and the Milwaukee Young Lawyers Association.
Ms. Havlik has been recognized for her leadership in establishing the Wisconsin Wills for Heroes program, a national program designed to provide eligible emergency personnel (publically employed or volunteer police officers, fire fighters and EMTs) with free estate planning documents to protect themselves and their families. She received both the Gordon Sinykin Award of Excellence (2010), an award that recognizes attorneys for their work on an individual law related education or public service project and the coveted Milwaukee Bar Association Pro Bono Publico Award (2011). In addition, Ms. Havlik was named to the 2006 - 2008, and 2011 lists of Wisconsin Super Lawyers - Rising Stars for her estates & trusts and tax & individual planning work.