Real Estate Law

Dist. Ct. did not err in granting defendants’ motion to dismiss plaintiffs-Counties’ action seeking declaration that Illinois statute (765 ILCS section 128) required that every assignment of mortgage be recorded. Under Union County, 735 F3d 730, said statute does not require that any mortgage be recorded, and thus recording of any mortgage assignments made by defendant was optional. Ct. rejected plaintiff’s claim that defendants’ refusal to pay recording fees, where promissory notes associated with recorded mortgages were transferred to third-parties, constituted unjust enrichment to defendants.

Dist. Ct. did not err in finding, after bench trial, that instant warehouse lease between parties required that plaintiff-tenant make repairs to concrete slab floor of warehouse. While lease contained ambiguous terms as to whether plaintiff or defendant-landlord was required to make such repairs, where lease specifically required plaintiff to repair “floors” and generally directed defendant to repair warehouse’s “foundation,” Dist. Ct. could properly find that instant damage, which was caused by plaintiff’s heavy fork-lifts, affected slab’s function as “floor.” Thus, plaintiff was required to make said repairs under the more specific clause in lease requiring plaintiff to repair floors of warehouse.