Streams Condominium No. 3 Ass'n v. Bosgraf

580 N.E.2d 570, 219 Ill. App. 3d 1010, 162 Ill. Dec. 607, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 1729
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedOctober 7, 1991
Docket2-90-1317
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 580 N.E.2d 570 (Streams Condominium No. 3 Ass'n v. Bosgraf) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Streams Condominium No. 3 Ass'n v. Bosgraf, 580 N.E.2d 570, 219 Ill. App. 3d 1010, 162 Ill. Dec. 607, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 1729 (Ill. Ct. App. 1991).

Opinion

JUSTICE DUNN

delivered the opinion of the court:

Plaintiff, Streams Condominium No. 3 Association (Streams), appeals from an order of the circuit court of Du Page County dismissing its forcible entry and detainer action against defendant, Linda Bosgraf, on the basis that it was barred under the doctrines of collateral estoppel and election of remedies. Streams argues on appeal that the circuit court erred by granting the motion to dismiss. We reverse and remand.

Streams filed its complaint in forcible entry and detainer on August 27, 1990. Streams alleged in the complaint that it was owed $7,522.38 in assessments for a condominium unit at 1479 County Farm Road in Wheaton and it was entitled to possession of the unit. The original defendants were the tenant, David Barbur, and the land trustee which held legal title to the unit. Neither is a party to this appeal. Shortly after the complaint was filed, Bosgraf, the sole beneficiary of the land trust holding title to the unit, was substituted as a defendant for the land trustee.

Bosgraf filed a motion to dismiss the complaint pursuant to section 2 — 619 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Code) (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 110, par. 2 — 619) in which she made the following factual allegations. On July 30, 1979, Bosgraf entered into a contract for the installment sale of the condominium unit at issue in the case to Douglas Scott, and possession of the unit was transferred to Scott. The contract provided that Scott would pay all condominium assessments made by Streams. Scott subsequently transferred his interest in the unit to DTS-2, an Illinois limited partnership. This was a violation of his installment sales contract with Bosgraf.

In November 1985, Scott and DTS-2 both filed petitions for reorganization pursuant to chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code (11 U.S.C. §1101 et seq. (1982)) with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The condominium unit was administered as an asset of the DTS-2 bankruptcy case. Streams subsequently filed a motion for relief from the automatic stay. (11 U.S.C. §362 (Supp. V 1987).) In connection with this motion, Streams and DTS-2 agreed to the entry of an order requiring DTS-2 to pay the condominium assessments as they came due plus $125 per month on the past-due assessments. The bankruptcy court entered the order on May 4,1987.

Bosgraf further alleged in the motion to dismiss that DTS-2 defaulted almost immediately on its obligation to make the above payments and Streams did nothing to enforce the order. As a result, the amount of assessments owed on the unit increased from $4,254.59 in May 1987 to $7,522.38 as of the date the complaint was filed. Streams had a priority administrative claim against DTS-2 in the bankruptcy case which, on information and belief, would result in full payment of the past-due assessments. Bosgraf stated in the motion that she relied to her detriment on the failure of Streams to notify her that it did not intend to enforce the May 4, 1987, bankruptcy court order and that allowing Streams to proceed against her would result in double recovery. She therefore contended that the claim against her was barred under the doctrine of election of remedies. Bosgraf signed a statement at the end of the motion certifying that the statements therein were true except those based upon information and belief, which she still believed to be true.

Streams filed a response to the motion in which it alleged that the May 4, 1987, bankruptcy court order addressed only assessments that were due prior to the time the bankruptcy petition was filed while the forcible entry and detainer complaint sought recovery of both prepetition and post-petition assessments. Streams also alleged in the response that the bankruptcy trustee of the DTS-2 estate had recently obtained an order of abandonment from the bankruptcy court for the condominium unit thereby removing it from the bankruptcy court’s exclusive jurisdiction.

The circuit court held a hearing on the motion to dismiss on October 26, 1990. The court granted the motion on the basis that plaintiff’s complaint was barred under the doctrines of collateral estoppel and election of remedies. Streams now appeals.

A motion to dismiss pursuant to section 2 — 619 of the Code admits all well-pleaded facts as well as any reasonable inferences which may be drawn from those facts. (Benton v. Smith (1987), 157 Ill. App. 3d 847, 852.) The defendant has the burden of proving the affirmative defense relied upon in a section 2 — 619 motion, and such a motion should only be granted if the record establishes that no genuine issue of material fact exists. (Bloomingdale State Bank v. Woodland Sales Co. (1989), 186 Ill. App. 3d 227, 232.) The trial court may consider the pleadings, any affidavits submitted by the parties, and deposition evidence in ruling on a section 2 — 619 motion. Bloomingdale State Bank, 186 Ill. App. 3d at 232.

We shall first consider whether the circuit court was correct in ruling that Streams’ complaint was barred under the doctrine of collateral estoppel. This doctrine applies if a party or its privy participates in two separate cases involving different causes of action and a controlling fact or issue material to the determination of both cases has been adjudicated against that party in the initial action by a court of competent jurisdiction. (Housing Authority v. YMCA (1984), 101 Ill. 2d 246, 252.) The judgment in the initial action will only estop re-litigation of questions actually determined in that action, not matters which might have been litigated. (YMCA, 101 Ill. 2d at 252.) The party seeking to have the doctrine of collateral estoppel applied must meet the heavy burden of establishing with certainty that the identical and precise issue sought to be precluded in the later action was decided in the previous action. Benton v. Smith (1987), 157 Ill. App. 3d 847, 853.

The automatic stay provision of the Bankruptcy Code states that the filing of a bankruptcy operates as a stay of any act to obtain possession or control of property of the bankruptcy estate. (11 U.S.C. §362(a)(3) (Supp. V 1987).) This provision prevented Streams from filing a forcible entry and detainer complaint in State court while the property was part of the DTS-2 bankruptcy estate unless Streams sought and received relief from the stay pursuant to section 362(d) (11 U.S.C. §362(d) (Supp. V 1987)). Streams therefore filed its complaint for relief from the stay which led to the May 4, 1987, agreed order.

Bosgraf contends that the above order resolves the same issue present in the subsequent State court action, the amount of assessments, if any, owed to Streams for the condominium unit in question. We disagree. The May 4 order states that DTS-2 “shall provide adequate protection for the secured interest of Streams” in the condominium unit by paying its proportionate monthly share of the common expenses of the complex and paying $125 per month as against Streams’ post-petition arrearage claim.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Camp Street Crossing, LLC v. AD IN, Inc.
2021 IL App (3d) 200462-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2021)
Law Offices of Colleen M. McLaughlin v. First Star Financial Corporation
2011 IL App (1st) 101849 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2011)
Law Offices of Colleen M. v. First Star
2011 IL App (1st) 101849 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2011)
Hagemann v. Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission
941 N.E.2d 878 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2010)
Housman v. Albright
857 N.E.2d 724 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2006)
MC Baldwin Financial Co. v. DiMaggio, ROSARIO & VERAJA, LLC
845 N.E.2d 22 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2006)
Judith Wright v. Pucinski
816 N.E.2d 808 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2004)
Wright v. Pucinski
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2004
ADVOCATE HEALTH AND HOSPITALS CORP. v. Bank One, NA
810 N.E.2d 500 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2004)
Luise, Inc. v. Village of Skokie
781 N.E.2d 353 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2002)
In Re Collector of Cook County
774 N.E.2d 832 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2002)
In re Application of the County Collector
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2002
Anderson v. Financial Matters, Inc.
672 N.E.2d 1261 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1996)
Lempa v. Finkel
663 N.E.2d 158 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1996)
Levy v. Versar, Inc.
882 F. Supp. 736 (N.D. Illinois, 1995)
Zink v. Maple Investment & Development Corp.
617 N.E.2d 1269 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1993)
Sarno v. Thermen
608 N.E.2d 11 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1992)
Sharpenter v. Lynch
599 N.E.2d 464 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1992)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
580 N.E.2d 570, 219 Ill. App. 3d 1010, 162 Ill. Dec. 607, 1991 Ill. App. LEXIS 1729, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/streams-condominium-no-3-assn-v-bosgraf-illappct-1991.