Background
The Village of Dolton brought abandonment proceedings in May 2023 concerning property at 14546 Shepard Drive. It obtained a default abandonment order and, in January 2024, a judicial deed. The Village named the former owner and Deutsche Bank but did not name or serve Cook County Land Bank Authority (CCLBA).
CCLBA had bought the property at a 2019 tax sale, petitioned for a tax deed before the Village filed suit, and obtained a January 2023 order directing issuance of that deed. Its deed was recorded in February 2024. After learning of the Village’s proceedings, CCLBA intervened and successfully sought relief from the judgment under Illinois Code of Civil Procedure section 2-1401.
The Court’s Holding
The appellate court affirmed. It held that CCLBA was a tax purchaser with an “interest of record” under the municipal abandonment statute, even though its tax deed had not yet been recorded when the Village filed its case. Tax-sale records, the tax-deed petition, and the order directing issuance of the deed were public records, and the statute expressly required the Village to name and serve tax purchasers.
The court also upheld intervention as of right and the order vacating the abandonment judgment and judicial deed. CCLBA acted promptly after discovering the proceedings, had no other means to protect its interest, and was not represented by an existing party. The Village failed to provide a transcript of the section 2-1401 hearing, requiring resolution of record-related doubts against it; on the available record, the court found no abuse of discretion in granting equitable postjudgment relief.
Key Takeaways
- A municipality pursuing an abandonment action must name and serve tax purchasers with interests reflected in public tax-deed records.
- An unrecorded tax deed does not eliminate a tax purchaser’s “interest of record” under the abandonment statute.
- A judicial deed may be vacated through section 2-1401 when the statutory and equitable requirements support relief.
Why It Matters
The decision requires municipalities to investigate public tax-sale and tax-deed proceedings, not merely recorded title, before obtaining abandonment orders or judicial deeds. It also underscores the appellate risk of challenging discretionary postjudgment relief without a complete hearing record.