Chicago Title loses quiet title bid as mortgage lien outlives foreclosure deadline
The lender filed to foreclose on June 23, 2022 – one day before the 10-year window closed. Chicago Title Land Trust Company, trustee of the property, got the case tossed, arguing the lender had not sent an acceleration notice or shown evidence she had done so. The dismissal came without prejudice, but the lender never refiled.
Chicago Title then went on offense. In June 2023, it filed a quiet title action – a lawsuit asking a court to declare a property free and clear – seeking an order that the mortgage lien had no force or effect.
The lender countered with a motion for summary judgment, asking the court to rule without a full trial. She conceded the foreclosure window had closed but argued the lien was a separate matter. The Cook County circuit court agreed. The appellate court affirmed.
The Supreme Court, in an opinion by Justice Tailor, drew a line between two statutes. Section 13-115 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure sets a 10-year deadline to foreclose. Section 13-116 sets the life of a mortgage lien at 20 years from the date the last payment becomes due. Two different clocks, and one expiring does not kill the other.
Chicago Title argued section 13-116 only clears old mortgages from public records. The court disagreed, noting the statute covers “every mortgage” lien – language it found “without exception or qualification.”
