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2008 Officers

2008 Board of Directors

William W. Austin, Director
Siemer, Austin, Resch, Fuhr & Totten, Effingham, Illinois

Mr. Austin has engaged in private practice as an attorney for over 30 years, concentrating in real estate, business law, banking, estate planning and related litigation. He is a charter member of ATG Trust Company's Board of Directors, and has served as its Chairman since 2001. He has been a director of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc., our parent company, since 1986. He has served as Vice Chairman and currently serves as its Chairman. His business experience includes board and executive positions with a number of corporate and banking organizations. His professional and civic activities include past and present service with several bar, charitable, educational and civic organizations. Military service: Brigadier General (Retired), AUS. University of Illinois, J.D. and B.S. in Finance
 
Peter J. Birnbaum, Director
Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, President and CEO

Mr. Birnbaum began his career at ATG in 1981 as a first-year law student and was named President and Chief Executive Officer in 1991. Peter leads ATG's mission to be the nation's premier lawyer service organization. He is a well respected author and speaker on significant topics affecting the legal profession, having published numerous articles and being featured in many publications and news programs. Peter is a highly respected advocate for the legal profession and has testified on industry issues in the Illinois Legislature and the United States Congress. He has also been very active in community service: Chicago-Kent College of Law - Alumni Board (Immediate Past President), Board of Overseers (current member), Distinguished Service Award (recipient, October 2004); Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago - Past President and longtime Big Brother to a West Side youth. Peter resides in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood with his wife, Juliet, their daughter, Madeline, and twins Ben and Lucy. Chicago-Kent College of Law, J.D., University of Iowa, B.A.
 
Kathie J. Butts, Vice President
ATG Trust Company, Chicago, Illinois

Ms. Butts has had a career in the financial services industry of more than 15 years, and has been Vice President of Operations for ATG Trust Company since its inception. In addition to client and attorney member contact functions, she is responsible for managing the movement and registration of cash and securities, vital to the establishment and ongoing administration of trust accounts. Ms. Butts enhances and maintains her knowledge base through such industry specific training as the prestigious Cannon Trust School programs. University of Iowa, B.B.A., Benedictine University, M.B.A.
 
Andrew C. Dystrup, Director
Dystrup, Hoster and Jarot, PC, Joliet, Illinois

Mr. Dystrup has engaged in the practice of law for over 30 years. His practice includes real estate with specific emphasis on real estate taxes and land use. His firm has experience in the formation of an Illinois bank trust department. He has served on the ATG Trust Company board since its inception and on the board of the parent company since 1976, where he is a past Chairman, and has served on and chaired many of its committees. His involvement in the legal profession includes memberships and leadership posts in local bar associations, the Illinois State Bar Association and the American Bar Association as well as various committees. University of Illinois, J.D. and B.S.
 
Robert Lopardo, President and Director
ATG Trust Company, Chicago, Illinois

Mr. Lopardo has been in the trust and financial services industry in the greater Chicago area for more than 30 years in both Illinois and federally chartered trust institutions. He joined ATG Trust Company as President in 2001. His expertise and experience is in trust and estate administration, taxation and investment management. Mr. Lopardo's involvement in professional and community organizations includes service with local and regional commissions and committees overseeing financial and planning activities. He has been an instructor for the Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Banking. Elmhurst College, B.S.B.A.
 
Daniel A. Marsh, Jr., Secretary/Treasurer and Director
Daniel A. Marsh, Jr. & Associates, Chicago, Illinois

Mr. Marsh has been active in investment management and finance for clients of his law practice for over 30 years. In addition to bringing that experience to ATG Trust Company, his practice areas include estate planning, business planning and real estate. He has served on the board of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc. (ATG) since 1976, served on and chaired many ATG committees and is a past Chairman. His service to boards and other organizations is varied and includes the John Marshall Law School Alumni Association (president and board chair) and the Morris Animal Foundation. John Marshall Law School J.D., Loyola University, B.B.A.
 
Terrence J. McCormick, Vice President
ATG Trust Company, Chicago, Illinois

Mr. McCormick is an experienced professional in retirement plan issues with strong portfolio management skills. He has worked in the field since 1977 at companies throughout northern Illinois, including Merrill Lynch, Dunn and Bradstreet, and First Colonial Bancshares. Cannon Trust School, University of Notre Dame; National Commercial Lending School, University of Oklahoma; Illinois State University, B.S., Business Economics.
 
James E. Molenaar, Director
Molenaar & Associates, Lansing, Illinois

Mr. Molenaar's practice of law has concentrated in estate planning, real estate law, and general corporate matters. He has served on the Board of Directors of parent company, Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc., in many capacities - including Chairman of the Board - and as an active shareholder member. Well-established as a leader in the legal community for more than 40 years, Molenaar is a past president of both the South Suburban and Lansing Bar Associations, is a current member of the American and Illinois State Bar Associations (ISBA), and is a past chairman of the General Practice Section Council of the ISBA. University of Illinois, J.D. and A.B.
 
Dennis A. Norden, Sr. Vice President and General Counsel
ATG Trust Company, Chicago, Illinois

Mr. Norden's 29-year law practice in Kankakee, Illinois, covered real estate and general corporate law as well as estate planning and settlement and specialized practice areas in the health care field. Mr. Norden is a past chairman of the Illinois State Bar Association's 3,500 member Real Estate Section Council and is a frequent lecturer and author of numerous publications in the trust and estate field. He served on the Board of Directors of Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc., from 1986 until the formation of ATG Trust Company in 1998. His biography is listed with Who's Who in American Law. University of Illinois, J.D. and B.A.
 
Steven K. Norgaard, Director
Steven K. Norgaard, P.C., Glen Ellyn, Illinois

Mr. Norgaard's law practice concentrates in the areas of estate planning, probate and trust administration, real estate, and related business law. Prior to establishing his own firm, Mr. Norgaard practiced in a large Chicago law firm as a member of its estate planning and real estate groups. He is past chairman of the Dupage County Bar Association Estate Planning and Probate Committee and is a member of the American Bar and Illinois State Bar Associations. Mr. Norgaard has been an active member of ATG Trust Company's parent organization for more than ten years and has served on several committees of its board. The Law School, University of Chicago, J.D., University of Illinois, B.S., passed the Illinois CPA Exam.
 
Walter J. O'Brien II, Chairman of the Board
O'Brien & Associates, P.C., Oak Brook, Illinois

Mr. O'Brien has devoted his legal career to estate planning and administration, real estate, and business law matters. His extensive experience includes representing a trust department at a major Chicago bank and handling estate matters for clients of significant wealth. He serves on the Board of Directors of Harris Bank in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, and has served on the board of ATG Trust Company since its inception. Mr. O'Brien also serves on the board and is a past Chairman of the parent company, Attorneys' Title Guaranty Fund, Inc., where he has served on and chaired several committees and is an active shareholder member. His professional and civic activities include past and present service with several bar, charitable, educational and civic organizations. Northwestern University School of Law, J.D.; University of Notre Dame, B.B.A.
 
Peggy A. Peters, Vice President and Trust Officer
ATG Trust Company, Lake Forest, Illinois

Ms. Peters joined ATG Trust at the end of 2005 when ATG Trust acquired the land trust business of Northern Trust. She serves as Vice President and Land Trust Officer, the same role she held at Northern for many years, allowing seamless continuity to Northern Trust clients. She interfaces with the legal community and directly with customers, informing them of the benefits and uses of land trusts in Illinois. National Trust School, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 1980.
 
Carol M. Simpson, Director
Hattery, Simpson and West, Galesburg, Illinois

Ms. Simpson's more than 20 years in the practice of law includes extensive experience in trust administration. Prior to beginning her private law practice, Ms. Simpson was a vice president, trust officer and manager of the trust department for an Illinois bank. She contributes her extensive experience in estate and trust planning and administration to ATG Trust Company, and is an active member of the parent organization. Ms. Simpson frequently attends the Notre Dame Tax and Estate Planning Institute, and is a frequent speaker and author on trust administration and related topics. William Mitchell College of Law, J.D., Augustana College, B.A.

[Last update: 2-28-08]
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