Below is a summary of activities of this section from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. While past activity is no guarantee of future activity, it may give a idea of what to expect this year.
Section Stats
Newsletters
Issues: 12
CLE
Live Programs: 7
Discussions
Posts: 714
Legislation
Bills Reviewed: 191
Continuing Legal Education
Section members receive discounts on section-sponsored CLE programs. During the 2025–26 bar year, the Section sponsored the following programs:
- Sponsor Real Estate Law Update 2025 (10/29/2025)
- Co-Sponsor The New Illinois Receivership Act (01/28/2026)
- Sponsor The City of Chicago Northwest Side Housing Preservation Ordinance (03/24/2026)
- Sponsor The Ins & Outs of Commercial Real Estate Transactions (03/25/2026)
- Co-Sponsor We Can Work It Out: Mediating a Construction Dispute (04/09/2026)
- Sponsor Homeowner Associations: Representing Developers, Drafting Documents, and More (05/14/2026)
- Co-Sponsor Landlord – Tenant Issues: Inspections, Discrimination, Housing Court, and More (06/26/2026)
ISBA Central Discussions
ISBA Central communities allows section members to pose questions, answer questions, and share information with fellow section members. Members of the section get free access to the section’s community. Joining any section also grants you access to the Transactional and Litigation communities. Below are the total number of discussion posts during the 2025–26 bar year.
Real Estate Law
- Community members: 2,073
- Total discussion posts: 714
Transactional
- Community members: 24,715
- Total discussion posts: 386
Litigation
- Community members: 24,710
- Total discussion posts: 706
Legislation
The Section Council reviewed 191 bills that may affect their members’ practice area. Highlights of the most recent legislative session include:
- House Bill 4462 amends the Illinois Power of Attorney Act. The bill deletes two reasons for which it is deemed reasonable cause for a third party to refuse to honor a power of attorney for property: (i) the refusal by the agent to provide a copy of the original document that is certified to be valid by an attorney, a court order, or governmental entity; and (ii) the refusal of the principal's attorney to provide a certificate that the power of attorney is valid.
- House Bill 4896 amends the Code of Civil Procedure by establishing a process for a tenant in common or tenants in common who have inherited real property under the intestate provisions of the Probate Act of 1975 to obtain legal title to that property. Provides that the petitioner or petitioners must have been in actual possession for 7 years and have paid all taxes on the property during those 7 years. Requires that the petitioner or petitioners must file a signed declaration with the recorder of deeds at least 2 years before an action under the new provisions may be commenced stating intent to acquire title using the process under the new provisions, send notice to any other person or persons with an ownership interest in the property, and publish a notice of the action in a newspaper of general circulation in the jurisdiction where the property is located. Permits people with ownership to oppose the petition. Requires that a person or persons seeking to commence an action under the Act each have a household income of under 80% of area median income as determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development for the county where the lands or tenements are located; and that the person or persons bringing the action have conducted a search, with due diligence, for anyone who may have an ownership interest in the property. Effective January 1, 2027.
- Senate Bill 2951 amends the Code of Civil Procedure. It provides that any indebtedness of any kind that is secured by a mortgage or deed of trust in the nature of a mortgage has a 10-year period to commence an action.