Justia Legal Services & Lawyers Directory

Founded in 1994, the law firm of Sullivan Taylor & Gumina is dedicated to providing compassionate family law services to people throughout Chicago's western suburbs. Our attorneys bring an uncommon diversity of personal and legal experience to our clients' family law matters. As former public defenders, teachers, child advocates, state's attorneys, and therapists, we are able to help people work through the legal, emotional, and financial issues associated with complex family law matters.

CHRIS S. HAAFF owns and operates his own law firm in Crystal Lake, McHenry County, Illinois. He is an experienced litigator and negotiator in all aspects of family law, including divorce, paternity, adoption, custody and visitation, child and spousal support, surrogacy, and qualified domestic relations orders. Chris is a frequent writer and speaker statewide on family law topics, and is involved with both the Illinois State Bar Association and the University of Illinois College of Law. Chris has been recognized as an ISBA “Young Lawyer of the Year” for outside Cook County and selected in the McHenry County Business Journal list of “Top Ten Business Professionals Under Age 40.”

When hiring an attorney you need to have someone on your side that concentrates their practice in one or two areas of law. I concentrate my practice in representing those charged with criminal and traffic offenses, family law, and litigation.

Our firm takes a team approach to resolving family law matters. By assigning a partner, an associate, and a paralegal to every client, we ensure that there is always someone in the office to answer our clients' questions and resolve legal matters. In addition, if necessary, we employ service counselors, business evaluators, forensic accountants, financial planners, psychiatrists, and psychologists to ensure our clients receive the best possible legal advice and representation possible.

We are strongly committed to building relationships with our clients. We understand that family law matters do not end when a divorce is final. Child custody and child support issues often continue until the children are in college and spousal support matters can continue for a lifetime. Our services go beyond the initial divorce proceeding. We ensure that our clients have the resources to manage divorce settlements, with an eye toward the secure enjoyment of their life.

I am a native Chicagoan, and moved to DuPage County in 1972.

I attended DePaul Law School full-time in the evening, while working for one of the major trust companies in the Chicago Loop. I therefore received extensive training and experience in Estate Planning, Probate and Tax matters, and have practiced in those areas for over 30 years.

My first employment after law school was with a Chicago law firm that specialized in Real Estate and Real Estate Development matters. I worked for them for several years, adding extensive experience in both residential and commercial real estate transactions and commercial real estate development to my legal expertise.

As a private practitioner in DuPage County, I continued practicing in these fields, and added representation of clients in divorce and other domestic and family related matters. I have now represented hundreds of clients relative to dissolution of their marriages. Several judges have also appointed me as Guardian ad-litem or attorney for children in troubled situations or in complex divorce cases.

I feel that my expertise in each of these areas compliment the other. For example, complex divorces often involve real estate or business holdings, with the accompanying valuation and ownership issues. Sometimes, a trust for the benefit of children is appropriate. In doing estate planning, there is often the need to plan appropriately for the second marriage situation. Real estate clients also often need to appropriately plan their estates, and to take title to their home in a manner that is consistent with their ultimate estate desires.

I was admitted to practice in the courts of Illinois in 1971 and the U.S. Federal Court in 1971, and admitted to practice before the U.S. Tax Court in 1992. I am a member of both the Illinois and DuPage County Bar Associations.

I have been a member of the Kiwanis Club of Glen Ellyn for some years, and am presently the President of the club. As such, I recently accepted, on behalf of our club, the Family Shelter Services Civic Partner of the year award. We work closely with Family Shelter Services and other organizations to provide benefits to children in need.

My primary hobby is the study of history, particularly of the American Civil War period. I am the past president of two Civil War Round Tables (Chicago and Salt Creek, which meets in Glen Ellyn, Illinois), and a member of three Round Tables (Chicago, Salt Creek and Milwaukee). I have also given presentations, on a number of topics, to round tables throughout the midwest.