State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
Legislation

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90_SB1945

      740 ILCS 130/6 new
      765 ILCS 405/4 new
          Amends the Premises Liability  Act  and  the  Land  Trust
      Beneficial  Interest  Disclosure  Act.  Imposes on owner of a
      derelict vacant building or a person having lawful control of
      the  premises  a  nondelegable,  absolute  duty  to   provide
      reasonable  protection  for  the lives, health, and safety of
      others,   including   trespassers,    including    preventing
      intentional  or criminal conduct facilitated by the condition
      of the building that causes injury or  death.   Imposes  tort
      liability on property owners or persons having lawful control
      of  derelict vacant buildings.  Requires that such a property
      owner or other person register with  the  police  department,
      and   makes  failure  to  register  a  Class  B  misdemeanor.
      Requires that a trustee of a land trust holding  real  estate
      certified by a municipality or law enforcement agency to be a
      derelict  vacant building disclose the identities of the land
      trust beneficiaries upon request. Effective immediately.
                                                     LRB9012326DJpc
                                               LRB9012326DJpc
 1        AN ACT concerning  derelict  vacant  buildings,  amending
 2    named Acts.
 3        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:
 5        Section 5.  The Premises  Liability  Act  is  amended  by
 6    adding Section 6 as follows:
 7        (740 ILCS 130/6 new)
 8        Sec. 6.  Derelict vacant buildings.
 9        (a)  As used in this Section:
10        "Derelict  vacant building" means a building (i) that has
11    been neglected, has been  left  to  fall  to  ruin,  and  has
12    remained  uninhabited  by  lawful  occupants  or at which all
13    lawful  business  operations  have  ceased  and   (ii)   that
14    continues in such condition for at least 30 days after notice
15    has been sent to the owner or person having lawful control of
16    the  premises  or to an agent of the property owner or person
17    having lawful control of the premises.
18        "Property owner" means the person owning  the  beneficial
19    interest of a land trust holding title to the property or the
20    individual  officers  and  owners  of the corporation holding
21    title to the property.
22        "Person having lawful control of the premises" means  the
23    person  actually  having  control  of the premises, and not a
24    land trust or corporate entity.
25        "Notice"  means  a   written   notice   served   by   the
26    municipality  having  jurisdiction  over the property or by a
27    law enforcement agency  upon  the  individual  having  lawful
28    control  of  the  premises  or upon the person whose name and
29    address is listed on  the  county  real  estate  records  for
30    receipt  of  the  tax  bills  for the real estate or upon the
31    person who is registered with the municipality as  the  owner
                            -2-                LRB9012326DJpc
 1    or agent with respect to the property.
 2        (b)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, any
 3    person  who  owns  or  has  under the person's lawful control
 4    property  on  which  there  is  situated  a  derelict  vacant
 5    building has a  continuing  nondelegable,  absolute  duty  to
 6    provide  reasonable  protection  for  the  lives, health, and
 7    safety of all persons, including trespassers, by  maintaining
 8    the premises in a safe, secure, closed, and locked condition.
 9    This duty includes preventing intentional or criminal conduct
10    that  is  facilitated by the condition of the derelict vacant
11    building and that causes injury or death.
12        (c)  Any property owner or person having  lawful  control
13    of the premises of a derelict vacant building shall be liable
14    in  tort  to any person who is caused injury as a result of a
15    breach of the duty described in paragraph (a),  unless  force
16    was used to break the locked condition of the premises or the
17    injury  was  caused  in  whole  or in part by the willful and
18    wanton conduct of the person who is injured.
19        (d)  Every notice under this Section shall be served:
20             (1)  by  mailing  the  notice   by   registered   or
21        certified mail, return receipt requested; or
22             (2)  by personal delivery; or
23             (3)  by  use  of  a facsimile machine with a copy of
24        the notice and proof of fax transmission  being  sent  by
25        regular  mail within 24 hours after the fax transmission;
26        or
27             (4)  by publication; or
28             (5)  by  posting  a  notice  on  the  front  of  the
29        building for 30 days in a location  observable  from  the
30        public sidewalk.
31        Every  notice  shall  include, but not be limited to, the
32    common address of  the  premises,  the  date  the  notice  is
33    initiated,  a declaration that the building is deemed to be a
34    derelict vacant building, the basis for  the  building  being
                            -3-                LRB9012326DJpc
 1    deemed a derelict vacant building, the date 30 days after the
 2    effective  date  of the notice, and the identity and location
 3    of the municipality or law  enforcement  agency  sending  the
 4    notice.
 5        (e)  Tort liability under this Section may be established
 6    by proving that:
 7             (1)  a  derelict  vacant  building  remained  in  an
 8        unlocked condition for 5 consecutive days; or
 9             (2)  a  derelict  vacant  building  remained  in  an
10        unlocked condition for 2 days after the property owner or
11        person having control of the property was notified of the
12        unlocked condition of the property; or
13             (3)  unauthorized  persons  were permitted to occupy
14        the derelict vacant building; or
15             (4)  the derelict vacant building was  permitted  to
16        remain in an unsafe condition.
17        Items  (1)  through  (4) are stated by way of example and
18    not by way of limitation.
19        (e)  Within 7 days after a building  becomes  uninhabited
20    by  lawful occupants or all lawful business operations at the
21    building have ceased,  the  property  owner  and  the  person
22    having  lawful  control of the derelict vacant building shall
23    do all of the following:
24             (1)  Register  the  name,  address,  and   telephone
25        number  of the owner and the person having lawful control
26        of  the  derelict  vacant  building   with   the   police
27        department  of  the municipality in which the building is
28        located.
29             (2)  Post on the front of the building, in lettering
30        clearly visible  from  the  public  sidewalk,  the  name,
31        address, and telephone number of the owner and the person
32        having lawful control of the derelict vacant building.
33        A violation of this subsection is a Class B misdemeanor.
34        (f)  Each  trustee  of  a  land trust holding real estate
                            -4-                LRB9012326DJpc
 1    certified by a municipality or a law enforcement agency to be
 2    a derelict vacant building shall comply with  the  provisions
 3    of Section 4 of the Land Trust Beneficial Interest Disclosure
 4    Act  in  disclosing  the  beneficiaries  of the land trust in
 5    writing to any person who submits (i) a written certification
 6    that the principal of the land trust  is  a  derelict  vacant
 7    building   and  (ii)  a  request  for  the  identity  of  the
 8    beneficiaries of the land trust.
 9        Section   10.  The   Land   Trust   Beneficial   Interest
10    Disclosure Act is amended by adding Section 4 as follows:
11        (765 ILCS 405/4 new)
12        Sec. 4.  Derelict vacant buildings.
13        (a)  Each trustee of a land  trust  holding  real  estate
14    certified by a municipality or by a law enforcement agency to
15    be  a derelict vacant building as defined in Section 6 of the
16    Premises Liability Act shall  disclose  in  writing,  to  any
17    person  who submits a written request for the identity of the
18    beneficiaries of the  land  trust,  the  name,  address,  and
19    beneficial  interest  of  each actual beneficiary of the land
20    trust, regardless of the size of the beneficiary's beneficial
21    interest. The trustee shall also  disclose,  whether  or  not
22    specifically  requested,  the name and address of each person
23    to be notified by the trustee regarding any inquiry about the
24    land trust.
25        (b)  Each trustee of a land trust shall  promptly  comply
26    with  a  request  under  subsection (a) within 7 working days
27    after receipt of the written request. Failure to  respond  to
28    the  written  request within 7 working days after its receipt
29    shall be considered a denial of the request.
30        (c)  The trustee of a land trust, in his or her  capacity
31    as  trustee, shall verify or affirm the written disclosure of
32    information provided to any  person  pursuant  to  a  request
                            -5-                LRB9012326DJpc
 1    under  this Section. If the trustee is a corporation or other
 2    business  entity,  the  information  shall  be  verified   or
 3    affirmed by an authorized officer of the entity.
 4        (d)  The  trustee of the land trust shall include as part
 5    of any document transferring any  of  the  principal  of  the
 6    trust a copy of any written request for information about the
 7    identities  of  the  beneficiaries  of  the  trust  that  was
 8    received by the trustee within 60 days of the transfer.
 9        (e)  Any subsequent trustee of a land trust that receives
10    notice  of  a  written  request  for  the  identities  of the
11    beneficiaries of the land  trust  pursuant  to  this  Section
12    shall  disclose  the identities of the trust beneficiaries in
13    the same manner as if the original written request was served
14    on that subsequent trustee.
15        (f)  The time limits prescribed in subsection (b) may  be
16    extended  in each case for not more than 7 additional working
17    days for any of the following reasons:
18             (1)  The requested information is stored in whole or
19        part at locations other than the office having charge  of
20        the requested information.
21             (2)  The  requested information has not been located
22        in the course of a routine search, and additional efforts
23        are being made to locate the information.
24             (3)  The request for information cannot be  complied
25        with  by the trustee within the time limits prescribed by
26        subsection (b) without unduly  burdening  or  interfering
27        with the operations of the trustee.
28        (g)  When  additional  time  is  required  for any reason
29    specified in subsection (f), the  trustee  shall,  by  letter
30    mailed  within  the  time limits specified by subsection (b),
31    notify the person making the written request  of  the  reason
32    for  the  delay and the date by which the information will be
33    made available. In no instance may the  delay  in  disclosing
34    the information last longer than 7 working days. A failure to
                            -6-                LRB9012326DJpc
 1    disclose  the requested information within those additional 7
 2    working days shall be considered a denial of the request.
 3        (h)  Any    person    denied    information    concerning
 4    beneficiaries of a land trust by  the  trustee  of  the  land
 5    trust  may  file  suit  for  injunctive relief or declaratory
 6    relief in the circuit court of the county where  the  trustee
 7    has  its principal office or location or where the person who
 8    was denied the information resides.
 9        (i)  The circuit court shall have jurisdiction to  enjoin
10    the  trustee of the land trust from withholding the requested
11    information and  to  order  the  production  of  any  records
12    relating  to  the  requested  information improperly withheld
13    from the person seeking the information.
14        (j)  The burden shall be on the trustee of the land trust
15    to establish that the failure of the trustee to  provide  the
16    requested information is not a violation of this Section.
17        (k)  If   a   person   seeking   to  receive  information
18    concerning the beneficiaries  of  the  land  trust  from  the
19    trustee of the land trust prevails in a proceeding under this
20    Section,   the  court  shall  award  that  person  reasonable
21    attorney's fees and court costs if the court finds  that  the
22    trustee  lacked  any  reasonable basis in law for withholding
23    the information.
24        Section 99. Effective date. This Act  takes  effect  upon
25    becoming law.

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