Background
Nationstar Mortgage filed a 2020 foreclosure action involving a Chicago property that Simeon Lewis had deeded to Infinite Light, a voluntary unincorporated association. Nationstar served Infinite Light by publication after its searches found no association office, registered officers, registered agents, or street address. A postcard mailed to Infinite Light’s listed post-office box was returned as undeliverable.
The circuit court entered foreclosure judgments, a judicial sale occurred, and the court confirmed the sale. On the same day the sale was confirmed, Infinite Light appeared through counsel; it later moved to quash service, arguing Nationstar should have attempted to serve Lewis as Infinite Light’s agent before resorting to publication. After an evidentiary hearing, the circuit court denied the motion.
The Court’s Holding
The appellate court affirmed. Section 2-205.1 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure provides three alternative methods to serve a voluntary unincorporated association: personal service on an officer, service on an agent at the association’s office, or publication and mail in the manner used for individuals. The statute does not require a plaintiff to attempt those methods in a particular order.
Infinite Light claimed Lewis was its agent, not its officer. And service on an agent is authorized only at the association’s office, while the record showed no office—only a post-office box. Infinite Light also did not establish that Nationstar could have personally served an officer. Its challenges to the sufficiency of Nationstar’s publication affidavits were forfeited because it did not pursue them on appeal.
Key Takeaways
- Section 2-205.1 permits service by publication on a voluntary unincorporated association without first attempting personal service.
- An agent may be served only at the association’s office; an alleged agent’s presence elsewhere does not satisfy that statutory method.
- An appellant forfeits arguments about alleged defects in publication service when it does not raise them on appeal.
Why It Matters
The decision confirms that the statutory service options for voluntary unincorporated associations are alternatives, not a mandatory sequence. In foreclosure litigation, an association that has no identifiable officers or office cannot invalidate publication service merely by asserting that someone should have been treated as its agent.