Commercial Banking, Collections, and Bankruptcy

Zitella v. Mike's Transportation, LLC

Zitella v. Mike's Transportation, LLC
Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
Discovery
Citation
Case Number: 
2018 IL App (2d) 160702
Decision Date: 
Monday, March 12, 2018
District: 
2d Dist.
Division/County: 
Du Page Co.
Holding: 
Appeal dismissed.
Justice: 
BIRKETT

Plaintiffs filed complaint for breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation, based on Defendants' alleged withholding of records that other principal of company had taken. Defendants filed appeal from circuit court's denial of motion to vacate order requiring Defendants to preserve all their books and records. Order is most closely akin to a nonappealable discovery order, which ensures that the case can eventually be tried. Order is not injunctive, and thus cannot be basis for appeal under Rule 307(a)(1). (ZENOFF and JORGENSEN, concurring.)

Senate Bill 3140

(Tom Cullerton, D-Villa Park) Amends the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that a debt collector or collection agency that brings a legal action on a debt against any consumer shall attach specified documentation to the complaint establishing that the plaintiff is the owner of the debt. Provides that if the debt was assigned more than once, each assignment or other writing evidencing transfer of ownership must be attached to establish an unbroken chain of ownership, beginning with the original creditor to the first debt buyer and each subsequent sale. Provides that before entry of a default judgment against a consumer in an action on a debt owned by a debt buyer, the plaintiff shall file with the court specified evidence that establishes the amount and nature of the debt. Requires the Attorney General to compile and file with the General Assembly twice a year a report containing, among other information, the number of and status of actions against debt collection agencies. Requires the Attorney General to attend and conduct specified meetings relating to debt collection practices and conferences of interested and relevant groups and associations. Scheduled for hearing next Tuesday in Senate Judiciary Committee. 

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Senate Bill 3295

Topic: 
Civil procedure

(Hastings, D-Tinley Park) amends the Code of Civil Procedure affecting pleadings or other documents verified by certification. Provides that the pleading or other document may be used in the same manner as though sworn under oath without any further requirement that the document be sworn before an authorized person. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee next Tuesday. 

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Mervyn v. Atlas Van Lines

Federal 7th Circuit Court
Mervyn v. Atlas Van Lines
Civil Court
Contracts
Citation
Case Number: 
No. 17-2036
Decision Date: 
February 14, 2018
Federal District: 
N.D. Ill., E. Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendant-trucking company’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiff-truck driver’s action alleging that defendant breached terms of lease to haul shipments, as well as violated federal Truth-in-Leasing regulations that covered terms of said lease. While plaintiff claimed that defendant had failed to pay him correct amount for said shipments as set forth in lease, plaintiff could not bring instant breach of contract action, where: (1) clause in lease indicated that financial entries made by defendant on payment documents were presumed correct and final if not disputed by plaintiff within 30 days after payment distribution; and (2) plaintiff waited 4 years to file instant lawsuit that essentially challenged said entries. Ct. rejected plaintiff’s claim that said clause created only rebuttable presumption that could be challenged via instant lawsuit.

HR 828

Topic: 
Malpractice insurance

(Demmer, R-Dixon) urges the ARDC to look into further amending Supreme Court Rule 756 to require Illinois attorneys to disclose to prospective and current clients if and when the attorney's malpractice insurance has lapsed. This is a legislative resolution. It has just been introduced. 

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Senate Bill 2432

Topic: 
Service of summons and foreclosure

(Mulroe, D-Chicago) provides that a summons that otherwise complies with Supreme Court Rules and is properly served is not invalidated and the court's jurisdiction is not affected by an error in format. Provides that a summons is not defective if the named defendant is listed on a document attached to the summons. Provides that the changes to the Code of Civil Procedure are declarative of existing law set forth by the Illinois Supreme Court in Fleshner v. Copeland, 13 Ill.2d 72 (1958).

Amends the Mortgage Rescue Fraud Act to provide that it is a violation for a distressed property consultant to, among other things, enter into, enforce, or act upon any agreement with a foreclosure defendant, whether the foreclosure is completed or otherwise, if the agreement provides for a division of proceeds between the foreclosure defendant and the distressed property consultant derived from litigation related to the foreclosure. Just introduced. 

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Toll Processing Services, LLC v. Kastalon, Inc.

Federal 7th Circuit Court
Toll Processing Services, LLC v. Kastalon, Inc.
Civil Court
Conversion
Citation
Case Number: 
No. 15-3187
Decision Date: 
January 23, 2018
Federal District: 
N.D. Ill., E. Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed and reversed in part and remanded

Dist. Ct. erred in granting defendants’ motion for summary judgment in action alleging that defendant wrongfully converted plaintiff’s pickle line rolls that had been stored at defendants’ facility awaiting plaintiff’s purchase order to defendants to recondition said rolls. While Dist. Ct. based its ruling on finding that plaintiff had abandoned said rolls where plaintiff did not communicate with defendants regarding said rolls for approximately 32 months under circumstances where parties had assumed that plaintiff would place purchase order within few months, Ct. of Appeals found that there was insufficient evidence for Dist. Ct. to decide on summary judgment that plaintiff had intended to abandon said rolls. This is so, since reasonable jury could conclude that plaintiff’s prolonged silence, standing alone, did not constitute decisive and unambiguous intent to abandon said rolls, especially where there was no evidence that anyone at plaintiff told defendants that it did not want said rolls or did not intend to use or sell them. Dist. Ct. did not err, though, in granting defendants’ summary judgment motion with respect to plaintiff’s similar breach of contract claim, since there was no meeting of minds with respect to how long defendants had agreed to store rolls, and since plaintiff did not know at time of alleged contract formation when, if ever, it would issue purchase order.

The Bank of New York Mellon v. Laskowski

The Bank of New York Mellon v. Laskowski
Illinois Supreme Court
Civil Court
Service
Citation
Case Number: 
2018 IL 121995
Decision Date: 
Friday, January 19, 2018
District: 
3d Dist.
Division/County: 
Will Co.
Holding: 
Appellate court reversed; remanded.
Justice: 
THOMAS

Plaintiff bank, as trustee for certificate holders of an alternative loan trust, filed residential mortgage foreclosure complaint against various defendants, including Pacific Realty Group. Court granted Bank's motion to vacate DWP (entered sua sponte upon Plaintiff's attorney's failure to appear), and reinstated case. Pacific filed motion to quash service 48 days after reinstatement of case, and 90 days after it filed its appearance, alleging that it is a foreign LLC and that it does not have a registered agent in Illinois.The 60-day time limit for filing motion to quash, in Section 15-1505.6(1) of Mortgage Foreclosure Law, is tolled while underlying case is DWP. THus, Pacific's motion to quash service was timely filed.(KARMEIER, FREEMAN, KILBRIDE, GARMAN, BURKE, and THEIS, concurring.)