

Illinois Mechanics Lien Basics
The Illinois Mechanics’ Lien Act ( 770 ILCS 60/1 et seq) provides a remedy to a contractor who provides improvements to real estate by allowing him to lien the property (place a hold on the property to secure payment). Once the lien is perfected, it clouds the property’s title and the contractor can sue to foreclose the lien and force a sale of the property. Without this lien remedy, the contractor is at the mercy of the general contractor or owner. If either runs out of mon


Assigning A Breach of Contract Claim In Illinois – Some Basics
Contract rights are assigned fairly often, especially in the mortgage loan and credit card contexts. In the former mortgage scenario, it’s common for a promissory note to be assigned multiple times during the note’s lifespan. When there’s eventually a note default, it becomes a challenge for the noteholder to trace how it came into the note’s possession. Repeated note assignments also provide the note maker (person who signed the note) a ready-made defense to a lawsuit base


Misnomer, Mistaken Identity and Diligence in Obtaining Service of Process – Illinois Standards
The misnomer and mistaken identity doctrines each involve situations where a plaintiff has sued a defendant too late. Misnomer is basically a spelling error. The plaintiff can correct a misspelled defendant’s name at any time, even after judgment. 735 ILCS 5/2-401(b). With mistaken identity, the analysis is more intricate: the court applies Code Section 2-616(d) to determine whether the time-barred complaint relates back to the original (timely) filing date. In a case of m