U.S. Bank National Ass'n v. Stachewicz

2025 IL App (4th) 241504-U
Appellate Court of Illinois·Decided July 22, 2025·No. 4-24-1504·Unpublished

Opinion

NOTICE 2025 IL App (4th) 241504-U This Order was filed under FILED

Supreme Court Rule 23 and is NO. 4-24-1504 July 22, 2025 not precedent except in the Carla Bender limited circumstances allowed 4th District Appellate under Rule 23(e)(1).

IN THE APPELLATE COURT Court, IL

OF ILLINOIS

FOURTH DISTRICT

U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, ) Appeal from the Plaintiff-Appellee, ) Circuit Court of v. ) Marshall County JOHN STACHEWICZ and NANCY STACHEWICZ, ) No. 22FC4 Defendants-Appellants. )

)

) Honorable

) James A. Mack and

) Paul E. Bauer,

) Judges Presiding.

JUSTICE ZENOFF delivered the judgment of the court.

Justices Steigmann and Lannerd concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶1 Held: The appellate court affirmed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of plaintiff in its foreclosure action against defendants where plaintiff possessed a note endorsed in blank and defendants contested only plaintiff’s standing. The appellate court affirmed the court’s order confirming the sale where no language was missing from the foreclosure judgment, defendants received required notices, and the foreclosure judgment complied with applicable statutory provisions.

¶2 In 2022, plaintiff, U.S. Bank National Association, filed a foreclosure complaint against defendants, John and Nancy Stachewicz. Defendants filed a motion to dismiss for lack of standing, which the trial court denied. Plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment, which the court granted. Thereafter, the court entered a judgment of foreclosure. The property was sold, and the court entered an order approving the report of sale and distribution, confirming the sale and evicting defendants. Defendants appeal, arguing that the court erred in granting summary judgment

to plaintiff and confirming the sale of the property. For the following reasons, we affirm.

¶3 I. BACKGROUND

¶4 On April 4, 2022, plaintiff filed a complaint to foreclose mortgage against defendants. Plaintiff alleged the following facts in the complaint. The mortgaged property is located at 1213 Third Street in Lacon, Illinois. Plaintiff obtained a mortgage and note on the property in July 2007 from Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS), as nominee of Shelter Mortgage Company, LLC. Defendants failed to pay the monthly installments under the loan and note beginning on November 1, 2013. Plaintiff is the current mortgagee “as trustee for the RMAC Trust, Series 2016-CTT” and “the holder of the indebtedness based on the attached Note which has already been duly endorsed and which is incorporated herein by reference.” The mortgage and note were attached to the complaint. The note was first endorsed by Shelter Mortgage Company, LLC, and payable to Guaranty Bank, FSB. Thereafter, Guaranty Bank FSB assigned the note to Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo then endorsed the note in blank.

¶5 Defendants filed an answer, asserting as an affirmative defense that plaintiff lacked standing to foreclose. Defendants also filed a motion to dismiss based on lack of standing. Plaintiff filed a motion to strike defendants’ affirmative defense, which the trial court granted, striking the affirmative defense with prejudice.

¶6 In March 2023, defendants filed a counterclaim, alleging deceptive practices because “Plaintiff is not the owner of the Mortgage in its Complaint.” Defendants further asserted: “Capacity to bring this foreclosure is not vested in the Plaintiff’s RMAC 2016-ctt trust.” Plaintiff filed a response, asserting that it is “the mortgagee, holder of the indebtedness, and trustee of the RMAC TRUST, SERIES 2016-CTT.” Plaintiff also denied that it “does not have capacity to bring this foreclosure.”

¶7 In August 2023, plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment against defendants as to plaintiff’s complaint and defendants’ counterclaims. Approximately two weeks later, defendants filed a motion to admit discovery and another motion to dismiss, arguing that plaintiff lacked standing to foreclose. Attached to the motion to admit discovery were many documents, including purported correspondence from plaintiff to defendants, purported correspondence from Rushmore Loan Services, LLC (Rushmore), to defendants, and several articles from Internet sources, including Yahoo and Google, about promissory notes, mortgages, and foreclosures. Plaintiff filed a response to defendants’ motion to dismiss, asserting that it was untimely.

¶8 In September 2023, plaintiff filed a motion for judgment of foreclosure. Attached thereto were documents establishing the following assignments of plaintiff’s mortgage: (1) in 2013, by MERS, as nominee for Shelter Mortgage Company, to Wells Fargo Bank, NA; (2) in 2016, from Wells Fargo Bank, NA, to Specialized Loan Servicing LLC; and (3) in 2017, from Specialized Loan Servicing LLC to plaintiff. Defendants filed an “answer” to plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, again seeking dismissal of the action based on plaintiff’s alleged lack of standing. Attached to defendants’ answer was an affidavit from Nancy referencing correspondence Rushmore allegedly sent to her and John in 2023, purportedly establishing that Rushmore possessed the note plaintiff attached to its foreclosure complaint.

¶9 On November 29, 2023, the trial court, Judge James A. Mack presiding, held a hearing on all pending motions. Plaintiff argued that the court should (1) deny defendants’ motion for additional discovery because the documents attached to the motion consisted of unauthenticated and irrelevant documents and correspondence, many of which constituted inadmissible hearsay, (2) deny defendants’ motion to dismiss as untimely and lacking merit because plaintiff had standing to bring the foreclosure action as holder of the note, and (3) grant

plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment because there were no disputed factual issues, there were no counteraffidavits, and plaintiff possessed a “blank signed note.” Plaintiff argued that defendants never disputed the amounts due and owing, default, or breach but only “raised vague arguments regarding services or standing.” Defendants asserted that they received correspondence in 2017 indicating that their mortgage had been sold to Rushmore. Plaintiff objected on hearsay grounds. Defendants responded: “These documents are not hearsay.” The court ruled that the documents were hearsay and inadmissible.

¶ 10 In its oral pronouncements, the trial court stated: “Well, with regards to the motion to admit the documents, it is not a proper motion, so I’m going to deny that. The motion to dismiss is filed after an answer was filed, so it is untimely. I’m going to order that that be stricken.” The court further ruled: “Based on the filings, the arguments that have been made here today, I am going to grant the motion for summary judgment in favor of the Plaintiff.” The court then entered a written order denying defendants’ motion to admit discovery, striking defendants’ motion to dismiss, and granting plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment.

¶ 11 On December 4, 2023, the trial court, Judge Paul E. Bauer presiding, entered a judgment of foreclosure in favor of plaintiff and against defendants. On December 26, 2023, defendants filed motions to vacate the court’s summary judgment order and judgment of foreclosure, again asserting that plaintiff was not the owner of the mortgage or note. Defendants also filed affidavits alleging that they were not properly served with the “Order of Summary Judgment and an Order to Foreclose.” Following a hearing on January 29, 2024, the court denied defendants’ motions.

¶ 12 On February 13, 2024, plaintiff filed a notice of sheriff sale, which was scheduled to take place on March 4, 2024. On March 4, 2024, defendants filed an objection to the sale. On

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