May Meeting - Top Ten Estate Planning Lessons Learned from Recently Deceased Celebrities
Eido M. Walny received his J.D. from the Boston University School of Law in 2001, where he was the
Executive Articles Editor of Boston University International Law Journal. He earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree in Political Science, with honors, from The University of Chicago. Eido’s practice focuses on
estate planning, asset protection, business succession, probate, trust administration, and he is also
experienced in business, tax, and real estate law. He is a noted national speaker, author, and commentator
on issues effecting estate planning, charitable giving methods, and topical business issues.
Eido founded the Walny Legal Group in 2011 with an eye towards providing clients with high level legal
care, but an equally high level of customer service. He provides counseling to protect multi-generational
family wealth, including drafting wills, revocable trusts, and irrevocable trusts designed to mitigate the
effect of taxes, leverage wealth, and minimize the risk of creditors’ claims. His experience also includes
structuring family and business succession plans, non-probate transfers, trust and probate administration,
and preparation of guardianships. In addition, he commonly utilizes will alternatives, advances charitable
giving, and does planning for families with special needs children.
Mr. Walny was named one of the Best Lawyers in America for 2021, 2022 and 2023, and a Wisconsin
SuperLawyer in 2022. In 2014, he was selected as one of five national “Advisors with Heart” by Trusts
& Estates Magazine. Eido was recognized for his contributions to the legal professional as a 2013
“Leader in the Law” by the Wisconsin Law Journal, and named as a Fellow to the Wisconsin Law
Foundation’s class of 2013. He has been recognized as a “Leading Lawyer” in the area of estate planning
by M Magazine. In 2012, he was named a “Forty Under 40” honoree by the Milwaukee Business Journal,
and a Financial Advisor magazine 2012 Private Wealth All-Star Team nominee. Each year between 2008
and 2017, Eido has been named a Wisconsin Rising Star in Milwaukee Magazine, a recognition granted
to fewer than 2.5% of attorneys in the state. He was also named a Five Star: Best in Client Satisfaction
Wealth Manager each year since 2009 by Milwaukee Magazine. Through the National Association of
Estate Planners and Counsels, Eido is certified as an Accredited Estate Planner (AEP) and an Estate
Planning Law Specialist (EPLS), the latter of which is the highest designation for an estate planning
attorney that is currently recognized by the American Bar Association. Fewer than 100 attorneys in the
nation have attained the EPLS designation. He has also been awarded the international TEP designation
from the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.
Eido serves on the national Board of Directors of the National Association of Estate Planners and
Counsels and is the Editor-in-Chief of the NAEPC Journal. He is the national estate planning editor for
Investopedia.com. He is a member of the Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law section of the State Bar
of Wisconsin, the New York State Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, and the American Bar
Association, as well as a member of the Milwaukee Bar Association and past president in the Milwaukee
Estate Planning Forum. He is also a member of the London-based Society of Trust and Estate
Practitioners (STEP), a group which offers resources for attorneys whose clients face international estate
planning issues. Eido is admitted to practice in Wisconsin, New York, Illinois and the U.S. District Court
for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
He also serves on the American Cancer Society’s Nationwide Gift Planning Advisor Council, is a
member of the President’s Advisory Council of the Froedtert Hospital Foundation, and has been honored
as a charter member by the Greater Milwaukee Foundation Mueller Society in recognition of the
advancement of philanthropy. He is the Past-President of the Wisconsin Association of Mediators.
In addition to numerous professional positions, Eido is the President for the Village of Bayside,
Wisconsin, and serves on several subcommittees, and county-wide committees.
In his free time, Eido makes cufflinks, restores classic cars, and manages his son’s hockey career.