Our Commitment to Community and Professional Excellence

At McPherson Law Offices, community involvement and professional service are at the heart of everything we do. Heather McPherson exemplifies this commitment through her tireless dedication to the legal profession, her active leadership in the Illinois State Bar Association, and her unwavering support of the Illinois Bar Foundation. Heather’s extensive service with the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission further underscores her dedication to maintaining the highest standards of ethics and integrity within the legal community.

Beyond her professional responsibilities, Heather is deeply involved in her local community, where she devotes her time and expertise to various organizations and initiatives that strengthen the fabric of our society. Whether mentoring fellow attorneys, leading community boards, or advocating for the legal rights of individuals, Heather's contributions reflect her belief in the power of community and her dedication to advancing the legal profession.

This page highlights the many ways in which Heather and McPherson Law Offices committed to making a positive impact—not only in the lives of our clients but also in the broader legal and local communities we proudly serve.

Heather McPherson’s Professional Leadership and Service

• 2023 – Present: ISBA Mutual Insurance Company Board of Directors
• 2022 – 2023: Treasurer of the Illinois State Bar Association
• 2021 – 2022: Secretary of the Illinois State Bar Association
• 2019 – Present: Board of Governors of the Illinois State Bar Association, elected to represent Area IV (Circuits 10, 14, and 15); Member of the Standing Committee on Investments, Standing Committee on Budget and Audit, and Standing Committee on Personnel
• 2024 – Present: Illinois Bar Foundation, Champions Secretary
• 2023 – 2024: ISBA Standing Committee on Scope & Correlation
• 2016 – 2022: Illinois Lawyers’ Political Action Committee (LAWPAC), Trustee; Chairperson 2021 – 2022; Nominated by the Illinois State Bar Association President and confirmed by ISBA Assembly
• 2014 – Present: Freeport Health Network and FHN Memorial Hospital, Board of Directors; Chairman of the Board 2024 – Present; Vice-chairman 2021 – 2023; Secretary 2019 - 2021
• 2014 – Present: Trusts & Estate Section Council of the Illinois State Bar Association
• 2014 – 2021: Standing Committee on Continuing Legal Education of the Illinois State Bar Association
• 2008 – Present: Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois; Hearing Board Panel Chair 2014 – Present; Hearing Board Member 2008 – 2014
• 2004 – 2014: Elder Law Section Council of the Illinois State Bar Association; Chairperson 2009 – 2010; Continuing Legal Education Chairperson 2012 – 2013; Newsletter Editor 2011 – 2012; Vice-Chairperson 2008 – 2009; Secretary 2007 – 2008; Legislation Committee Chairperson 2006 – 2007; Internet Committee Chairperson 2005 – 2006
• 2010 – 2015: Illinois State Bar Association Assembly Member, elected to represent the 15th Judicial Circuit
• 2009 – 2010: Illinois State Bar Association, Committee on Transfer on Death Deeds; Committee charged with drafting legislation to present to the Illinois Legislature
• 2008 – 2009: Illinois State Bar Association, Joint Committee of Elder Law Section and Trust & Estate Section for Revising Illinois Health Care and Property Statutory Power of Attorney Act; Helped draft and negotiate revisions; Act adopted by the Illinois Legislature in 2009
• 2008 – 2014: Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois, Oversight Committee Member; Reviewed complaints not warranting further investigation by staff
• 2001 – Present: Stephenson County Bar Association; President 2018 – 2021; Vice-president 2016 – 2018; Social Committee Chairperson 2012 – 2021; Program Committee 2008 – 2009; Treasurer 2002 – 2003
• 2012 – 2018, 2020 – Present: Freeport Health Network Foundation, Board of Directors
• 2005 – 2020: Parkview Home, Freeport, Illinois, Board of Directors; Legal Committee Chairperson 2005 – 2020
• 2005 – 2017: Freeport Art Museum, Board of Directors; Vice-president 2013 – 2017; Secretary 2008 – 2013; Endowment Committee 2005 – 2017
• 2002 – 2006: Prairie State Legal Services, Board of Directors; Audit Committee Member 2004 – 2006
• 2003 – 2007: First Presbyterian Church, Sunday School Teacher
• 2002 – 2010: Stephenson County Senior Center, Multidisciplinary Team
• 2003 – 2005: United Way of Northwest Illinois, Community Action Committee

Heather McPherson’s Publications and Speaking Engagements

• Speaker, IICLE: Foundations and Frontiers in Illinois Estate Planning, Administration, and Litigation, Chicago, Illinois, May 17, 2024
• Speaker, Illinois Central Estate Planning Association: The New Illinois Trust Code, Decatur, Illinois, May 19, 2021
• Speaker, Illinois State Bank Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp: “Trust Administration” and “Powers of Attorney,” Chicago, Illinois, April 28, 2017
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp: “Planning for an Aging Population: Your clients, your parents, and someday you,” Chicago, Illinois, April 22, 2016
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Practice Institute: “Best Probate Practices,” Rockford, Illinois, October 2, 2015
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp: “To Probate or Not to Probate, That is the Question,” Chicago, Illinois, April 22, 2015
• Speaker, United Presbyterian Church Seminar: Life and Death Matters: Legal Issues, November 1, 2014
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp: “Estate Planning, Trusts, & Special Needs: Spouse, Adult Child, and Grandchildren,” and “Pour Me Another Trust: Decanting Trusts in Illinois for Beneficiaries with Special Needs,” Chicago, Illinois, April 24–25, 2014
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association’s Elder Law Boot Camp: “Communications: Representing Clients with Diminished Capacity,” Chicago, Illinois, April 24–25, 2014
• Speaker, Attorney General of Illinois’ Elderly Service Officer (ESO) Training: “Elder Law Issues,” March 4, 2014
• Elder Law Newsletter: “Pour Me Another Trust,” Published by the Illinois State Bar Association, October 2013
• Speaker, Stephenson County Bar Association Continuing Legal Education: “Changes to Medicaid Law,” Freeport, Illinois, April 25, 2013
• Speaker, Illinois State Bar Association: “The New Medicaid Rules in Illinois,” Chicago, Illinois, September 19, 2012
• Speaker, Illinois Elder Rights Conference: “Medicaid After the DRA and the SMART Act,” Schaumburg, Illinois, July 12, 2012
• Elder Law Newsletter: “From Your Editors,” Published by the Illinois State Bar Association, February 2012
• Southern Illinois Law Journal, Vol. 36, Summer 2012: Co-author and editor, “Survey of Illinois Law: Elder Law”
• Southern Illinois Law Journal, Vol. 35, Summer 2011: Co-author and editor, “Survey of Illinois Law: Elder Law”
• Speaker at Governor’s Conference on Aging: “Testimony on the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and its Implementation in Illinois,” Chicago, Illinois, December 8, 2010
• Quoted in: Olsen, Dean, “Medicaid Rules for Elderly Tightened,” The State Journal Register, Springfield, Illinois, August 19, 2010
• Southern Illinois Law Journal, Vol. 34, Summer 2010: Co-author, “Survey of Illinois Law: Elder Law”
• Elder Law Newsletter: “Charitable Provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006,” Published by the Illinois State Bar Association, May 2007
• Elder Law Newsletter: “Introduction to OBRA ’93 Self-settled Special Needs Trusts,” Published by the Illinois State Bar Association, May 2006
• Elder Law Newsletter: “Annuities: Uses, Misuses, and Abuses,” Published by the Illinois State Bar Association, March 2005