2026 Articles

On March 31, 2026, the Fourth District of the Illinois Appellate Court held that a trial court must articulate a valid basis on the record before denying a third party’s request to intervene and unseal court records.

On Oct. 2, 2025, the Fifth District of the Illinois Appellate Court held that trust assets may not be used to pay off an encumbrance absent express terms of the decedent’s trust or will establishing intent for trust assets to be used for the encumbrance.

On May 20, 2026, the First District of the Illinois Appellate Court held that conclusory affidavit statements could not support dismissal under section 2-619(a)(9) where defendants failed to establish an affirmative matter defeating the plaintiff’s claims.

The General Assembly amended the Unemployment Insurance Act to expand the circumstances under which an individual who voluntarily leaves work will not be disqualified from receiving benefits.

On Dec. 30, 2025, the First District of the Illinois Appellate Court held that Illinois had continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify a child support order under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) where the parties consented in open court by proceeding without objection.

On Dec. 15, 2025, the Second District of the Illinois Appellate Court held that admitting a forensic laboratory report through a surrogate analyst violated the defendant’s confrontation clause rights.

The Department of Revenue adopted amendments to the Part governing the Cannabis Purchaser Excise Tax as applied to seizure proceedings. The amendment replaces discretionary language with mandatory language, requiring the department to hold a hearing before making a final licensure determination in cases involving seized cannabis products, tobacco products, and vending devices.