Illinois Law
The Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505)
You can contact the Office of the Illinois Attorney General to file a consumer complaint for cooperative mediation at any time you feel you need help.
If you can’t get satisfaction through personal negotiation or cooperative mediation, consider consulting with one of our attorneys to explore what options you have for resolving your dispute in court. Keep in mind that there are time deadlines to cancel sales contracts and pursue legal claims. The Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505) allows you to sue if you have been damaged by unfair or deceptive acts or practices. The Law Offices of R.S. Kohn can file a lawsuit on your behalf for monetary damages.
Consumer Fraud Hotlines
Chicago
800-386-5438
TTY: 800-964-3013
Springfield
800-243-0618
TTY: 877-844-5461
Carbondale
800-243-0607
TTY: 877-675-9339
Contracts for Home Repair in Illinois
Before signing any home repair or remodeling contract over $1,000, a person engaging in the business of home repair and remodeling is required in Illinois to provide the customer with a copy of the “Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights” pamphlet.
A contract spells out the who, what, where, when, and cost of your project. The agreement should be clear, concise, and complete. In Illinois, a written contract with all costs enumerated is required for home repair or remodeling work over $1,000. This written contract or work order is required by law to state total cost, including parts and materials and any charge for the estimate. In addition, the contract is required to give the name and address of the person engaged in the business of home repair or remodeling. If the contractor uses a post office box, mail service, or agent to receive business correspondence, the agreement must state the contractor’s home address.
Home Repair Contract
Do not sign your home repair contract until you read it carefully. If the salesperson pressures you to sign before you’ve had a chance to read and understand all of the contract, DO NOT SIGN IT. Never rely on the salesperson to read or explain the contract to you. If you do not understand the contract, call us for legal advice. Never sign a contract that has blank spaces. Finally, be sure to get a copy of everything you sign when you sign it. Remember, you have three business days to cancel any contract, if the sale is made and signed at your home. The contractor CANNOT take this right away from you by initiating work, selling your contract to a lender, or any other tactic.
Mechanic’s Liens and Lien Waivers
A mechanic’s lien protects a subcontractor in the event that the general contractor fails to pay for the subcontractor’s services or supplies. In that event, the subcontractor can ask a court to put a lien, or hold, on your property until the debt is paid. As the property owner, you are responsible for the debt, and you will not be able to sell or finance your property until all liens are paid or lifted.
Duties of the General Contractor and Subcontractors
Under Illinois law, the homeowner must request—and the contractor must provide—a written list of the names and addresses of “all parties furnishing materials and labor and of the amounts due or to become due to each.” This list, or affidavit, must appear either as part of the contract or in a separate printed statement, and it must contain the following language:
“THE LAW REQUIRES THAT THE CONTRACTOR SHALL SUBMIT A SWORN STATEMENT OF PERSONS FURNISHING MATERIALS AND LABOR BEFORE ANY PAYMENTS ARE REQUIRED TO BE MADE TO THE CONTRACTOR.”
The law also requires every subcontractor listed in the affidavit to notify the homeowner, either personally or by certified letter, when he or she has furnished materials or performed labor on the homeowner’s remodeling project. This notice preserves the subcontractor’s right to put a lien on your property, and it must contain the name and address of the subcontractor or material provider, the starting date of the work performed, the type of work performed or materials provided, and the name of the general contractor who requested the work to be done. This notice is required by law to contain the following statement:
“NOTICE TO OWNER”
“The subcontractor providing this notice has performed work for or delivered material to your home improvement contractor. These services or materials are being used in the improvements to your residence and entitle the subcontractor to file a lien against your residence if the services or materials are not paid for by your home improvement contractor. A lien waiver will be provided to your contractor when the subcontractor is paid, and you are urged to request this waiver from your contractor when paying for your home improvements.”
Lien Waivers
By giving you a signed lien waiver, a supplier of materials or services for your home repair project acknowledges that he or she has no right to file a mechanic’s lien against your property. In other words, the supplier acknowledges having been paid in full for those materials or services. It is important that you get these written and signed waivers from every subcontractor who has worked on your home in the course of the project. Do not make the final payment to the contractor until you are satisfied with the work and have obtained signed waivers showing that every subcontractor has been paid. You can find blank “waivers of lien” forms at home stores, print shops, and on the Internet.
- Source: Illinois Attorney General
General Litigation
The Law Offices of R.S. Kohn, Ltd. handle litigation and arbitrations for plaintiffs and defendants in the following areas: breach of contract, business disputes, and any consumer law fraud.
» Breach of Contract: A legal concept in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party’s performance. Typically, the judicial remedy for breach of contract is monetary damages. Where the failure to perform cannot be adequately redressed by money damage, the court may enter an equity decree awarding an injunction or specific performance.
» Consumer Fraud: In criminal law, fraud is the crime or offense of deliberately deceiving another in order to damage them – usually, to obtain property or services unjustly. Fraud can be accomplished through the aid of forged objects. In the criminal law of common law jurisdictions it may be called “theft by deception,” “larceny by trick,” “larceny by fraud and deception,” or something similar.
The Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505)
You can contact the Office of the Illinois Attorney General to file a consumer complaint for cooperative mediation at any time you feel you need help.
If you can’t get satisfaction through personal negotiation or cooperative mediation, consider consulting with one of our attornies to explore what options you have for resolving your dispute in court. Keep in mind that there are time deadlines to cancel sales contracts and pursue legal claims. The Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505) allows you to sue if you have been damaged by unfair or deceptive acts or practices. The Law Offices of R.S. Kohn can file a lawsuit on your behalf for monetary damages.
Consumer Fraud Hotlines
Chicago
800-386-5438
TTY: 800-964-3013
Springfield
800-243-0618
TTY: 877-844-5461
Carbondale
800-243-0607
TTY: 877-675-9339
Home or Business Owner Litigation
Defense of Mechanic’s Liens
Here’s a scenario that you may have experienced: You pay your contractor for work, materials and supplies related to your remodeling/building project with the implied understanding – AND AS PER THE CONTRACT – that he in turn will pay his subcontractors and suppliers for their part. This is, of course, is just one of the responsibilities of the general contractor running your project. But he doesn’t pay them for whatever reasons, and you unexpectedly find yourself slapped with a lien against your property. Which makes you liable for paying your contractors’ debts. AND you end up paying twice for the work and materials.
First, understand the Mechanic’s Lien exists to secure payment for services, labor and material on both personal and real property.
However, the creation and enforcement mechanisms differ depending on whether real or personal property is involved. The law of mechanic’s liens on real property governs the creation and enforcement of these liens on items of personal property that have been attached to real property in such a way as to be a fixture.
To have an enforceable lien, it usually must be “perfected.” This means that the holder of the lien must comply with the statutory requirements for maintaining and enforcing the lien. These requirements, which contain time limits, are generally as follows:
Providing the required preliminary notice to the property owner disclosing the entitlement to the lien (some states).
Filing notices of commencement of work (some states).
Filing notices in the required public records offices of the intention to file a lien if unpaid (some states).
Filing the notice or claim of lien in the required public records offices within a specified period of time after the materials have been supplied or the work completed (all states). The law varies from state-to-state on both the triggering event and the timing of this. Some states require the filing within a period measured from the time when the claimant completes its work, while others specify the event as being after all work on the project has been completed. The filing time periods after the triggering event vary, with 4-6 months being common.
Filing a lawsuit to foreclose the lien within a specified time period.
If you believe the Mechanic’s Lien against your property has not been “perfected” in a legal manner than please contact the Law Offices of R.S. Kohn and we can help with any litigation that may be necessary.
Subcontractor Litigation
Representation of Subcontractors in Mechanic Lien litigation
Can I file a Mechanic’s Lien?
If you are subcontractor working on an owner-occupied, single-family home you have no later than 60 days after the first day of work, or the first day of delivery of materials to the job site to file a Mechanic’s Lien.
If you are a subcontractor working anywhere other than an owner-occupied, single-family home, you have no later than 90 days after the last day of “substantial work” at the job site to file a Mechanic’s Lien. Substantial work is best defined by what it is not. It is not punch-list work, call backs under warranty, etc., or corrections or repairs to the original work.
Generally, any person (or corporation, etc.) who makes improvements to real estate, or supplies materials for the imporvement of real estate, under the following circumstances may claim a Mechanics Lien:
» Under a contract with the real estate’s owner;
» With the knowing permission of the owner;
» Under a contract with someone who has a contract with the owner (or under a contract with someone who has made improvements with the knowing permission of the owner).
About the Mechanic’s Lien
Section 1 of the Mechanics Lien Act also provides that certain professions (such as an architect) and trades (such as a well-driller) can claim a Lien for services related to real estate.
Courts have also ruled that a Mechanics Lien can be claimed for demolition work, provided that the demolition work is part of an overall plan to improve the real estate.
The statutes creating a Mechanic’s Lien usually give it a higher priority with respect to other interests in the title than the law gives most real property security interests. Among other things, priority is the attribute that determines which of several competing security claims will have the first claim to the funds of a foreclosure sale. In this context, the priority of a mechanic’s lien is determined either by the time the lien attaches to the title to the property or by the point in time to which it “relates back.” With some exceptions, the lien attaches or relates back to a time prior to the time that any notice of it appears in the public records.
In many states, this is specified as the time when the first visible construction commences on the building site. In others, it is when the contract is executed for the work to be done. In still others, each contractor or supplier’s lien attaches at the time when it commences its own work. Therefore, persons dealing with the owner of the title to the property risk having their interests unexpectedly subject to mechanic’s liens of which they had no knowledge.
A Title Search must be done
A title search is necessary because it provides a legal description of the property. In order to be valid, a Claim for Lien must identify the real estate against which the Lien is claimed by means of a legal description. Illinois courts have held that a street address is insufficient to identify the property for the purposes of a Mechanics Lien.
Contractor Litigation
Representation of Contractors in Mechanic Lien litigation
Can I file a Mechanic’s Lien?
If you are a general contractor, you have within 4 months (not 120 days) after the last day of substantial work at the job site to file a Mechanic’s Lien.
Generally, any person (or corporation, etc.) who makes improvements to real estate, or supplies materials for the imporvement of real estate, under the following circumstances may claim a Mechanics Lien:
» Under a contract with the real estate’s owner;
» With the knowing permission of the owner;
» Under a contract with someone who has a contract with the owner (or under a contract with someone who has made improvements with the knowing permission of the owner).
About the Mechanic’s Lien
Section 1 of the Mechanics Lien Act also provides that certain professions (such as an architect) and trades (such as a well-driller) can claim a Lien for services related to real estate.
Courts have also ruled that a Mechanics Lien can be claimed for demolition work, provided that the demolition work is part of an overall plan to improve the real estate.
The statutes creating a Mechanic’s Lien usually give it a higher priority with respect to other interests in the title than the law gives most real property security interests. Among other things, priority is the attribute that determines which of several competing security claims will have the first claim to the funds of a foreclosure sale. In this context, the priority of a mechanic’s lien is determined either by the time the lien attaches to the title to the property or by the point in time to which it “relates back.” With some exceptions, the lien attaches or relates back to a time prior to the time that any notice of it appears in the public records.
In many states, this is specified as the time when the first visible construction commences on the building site. In others, it is when the contract is executed for the work to be done. In still others, each contractor or supplier’s lien attaches at the time when it commences its own work. Therefore, persons dealing with the owner of the title to the property risk having their interests unexpectedly subject to mechanic’s liens of which they had no knowledge.
A Title Search must be done
A title search is necessary because it provides a legal description of the property. In order to be valid, a Claim for Lien must identify the real estate against which the Lien is claimed by means of a legal description. Illinois courts have held that a street address is insufficient to identify the property for the purposes of a Mechanics Lien.
Construction Litigation
In today’s slow economy, your company’s financial strength is perhaps your biggest concern. At issue in the industry today are homeowners and/or lenders not paying their bills for completed work. This is evidenced by the clogged Cook County court system and the number of Mechanics Lien cases being filed. Contractors are holding to their end of the bargain but are seeing their bills going unpaid.
The Law Offices of R.S. Kohn, Ltd. are currently working on a number of cases regarding various construction and lien disputes. Specifically, we represent contractors and subcontractors with Mechanics Lien and Breach of Contract litigation. We also provide services ranging from initial research of disputes and the filing and writing of liens and demand letters to mediation and, if necessary, the initiation of lawsuits and any trial work that may ensue.
Feel free to email our office or call us at 773.603.0425 if you have questions or concerns regarding any legal questions or actions you may have or wish to pursue.
Welcome to a Smart Decision
In tough economic times every dollar counts. But the means by which the lender, business owner, landlord, employer, builder and or subcontractor decide to go after money they believe is owed to them is not always legal. Many times misunderstandings of work to be performed or payment of said work are not clearly defined in the contract. Still other times, a “contract” is illegal at face value.
This is why you need to know what federal, Illinois, and even city laws and regulations protect you in case you’re forced to file a lawsuit or a lawsuit is filed against you and/or your business. At the Law Offices of R.S. Kohn, Ltd. we practice construction, condominium property, and general litigation cases every day. We take the lead in maneuvering these cases through the complicated legal system in a timely, economical, and effective manner. At all times we’re committed to providing you with the highest level of representation.
We realize the working class population of this country are the engine that determines how our country grows. We realize the importance of representing the millions of working class citizens and businesses when they need to take or have legal action(s) taken against them. Many Illinois law firms are too bloated, too expensive, or simply not equipped to handle your individual case. For instance, many law firms aren’t willing to work with the individual client so they can receive proper legal representation while paying a fee that best fits their personal budget.
Our experience tells us that person and business — regardless of thier income level or predicament — deserves equal and quality legal representation. At the Law Offices of R.S. Kohn, Ltd. we know that every dollar counts.
