Perry Smith received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Education from Loyola University of Chicago in 1977 and a Juris Doctor degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago-Kent College of Law, in 1985.
After graduating from college he worked as a high school biology teacher for one year and then as a diagnostic medical sonographer for seven and a half years. During that time he passed his written, oral, and practical registry examinations and became a Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer through the American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonographers.
After graduating from law school and being admitted to the Illinois Bar, Mr. Smith began working for the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office in late 1985. During his time in that office he worked in the Traffic, Misdemeanor, and Felony Review Divisions before spending more than three years in the Felony Trial Division. He left that office at Labor Day 1990 and began his association with Bernard Wysocki.
Mr. Smith does estate planning (wills, trusts, powers of attorney for both health care and property, transfer on death instruments, and DNRs) and litigation. He handles the following areas of practice:
- Social Security disability claims
- Personal injury claims
- Estate planning
- Probate for decedent’s estates
- Guardianships for adults with disabilities as well as for minors
- Trust administration
- Family law
- Construction litigation and mechanic’s liens for both contractors and property owners
- Eminent domain for property owners
- Mortgage foreclosures for lenders
- Contract litigation
Mr. Smith was admitted to the Bar of the State of Illinois in 1985, the general bar of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 1989, and its trial bar in 1990. He was admitted to the bar of the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in 1989, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in 2000, and the United States Supreme Court in 2001.
Mr. Smith has served as the Treasurer, Second Vice President, First Vice President, and President of the Lake County Bar Association. He has served as Chair of the Lake County Bar Association Ad Hoc Arbitration Committee, Legal Aid Committee, Public Relations Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, and Nominating Committee. He is also a member of its Civil Trial and Appeal Committee, Family Law Committee, and Trusts and Estates Committee. He has been a Trustee of the Lake County Bar Foundation (the charitable wing of the Bar Association) since 2017 and served as its Treasurer since 2018. Mr. Smith has also been a two-term delegate to the Illinois Bar Association Assembly and is a mentor in its Mentoring Program and a volunteer in its Lawyers Assistance Program. He is a Silver Fellow of the Illinois Bar Foundation and a former member of its Lawyers Care Committee.
Mr. Smith is a certified distance running coach through the Road Runners Club of America and is both a member and the coach of the Grayslake Running Club. In addition, he is a certified scuba diver through the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, an avid golfer and bowler, and a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and traces his ancestry back to Stephen and Elizabeth Hopkins, passengers on the Mayflower.
