Maniez v Citibank (IL)
553 Ill App LEXIS 2008 (1st D 2008)
Facts: Plaintiff Louis Maniez filed a complaint to foreclose a judgment lien against defendants Masayo Koshiyamo and Robert Jolly in 2005. Attached to the complaint were the following two documents: (1) the February 28, 1997, circuit court order entering judgment against the defendants; and (2) a memorandum of judgment entered on February 28, 1997, stating that a judgment in favor of plaintiff had been entered on February 27, 1997.
The circuit court certified the question of whether a memorandum of judgment inaccurately describing a judgment as having been entered on a specific date can serve to create a lien as provided by 735 ILCS 5/12-101.
Holding: Certified question answered in the negative. To create a lien against real estate, a memorandum of judgment must be recorded and there must be an enforceable judgment standing behind the memorandum. Section 12-101 of Civil Procedure requires that a memorandum of judgment include the date the judgment was entered. The appellate court concluded that a memorandum of judgment inaccurately describing a judgment as having been entered on a specific date did not create a lien because strict compliance with the guidelines is required under Section 12-101 is required. In response to plaintiff's argument that the inaccuracy was just a scrivener's error, the court noted that even scrivener's errors may constitute noncompliance with Section 12-101.
The court also noted that the memorandum of judgment was a notice document, and the purpose of recording the document is not just to alert the debtor that a judgment has been entered but to alert prospective purchasers as well. Moreover, a notice inaccurately dated February 28, 1997, would not put a purchaser on notice that a judgment had been entered against the defendants on February 27, 1997. The court remanded.
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