Key Points | ON RECONSIDERATION COOK COUNTY JUDGE AGAIN DEEMS $500,000+ NOTE UNENFORCEABLE & REQUIRES RELEASE OF MORTGAGE

In September 2023, a circuit court judge in Cook County, Illinois, Judge William Sullivan, delivered a painful blow to the mortgage industry when he dismissed a foreclosure complaint, declared the borrower’s $512,800 note unenforceable and ordered the lender, The Bank of New York (BONY), to record a release of the mortgage. BONY moved for rehearing which Judge Sullivan granted; however, he doubled down on his previous decision refusing to modify any of his prior findings and rulings.
Judge Sullivan again concluded that BONY failed to strictly comply with contractual conditions precedent and was time-barred from redemanding and filing a new action due to the ten-year statute of limitations on actions to enforce a note. Since the note could not be enforced, the mortgage was extinguished. The court dismissed BONY’s amended foreclosure complaint with prejudice and declared the $512,800 note unenforceable and ordered BONY to record a release of the mortgage within 30 days.
Unfortunately, the worst is likely yet to come. The court already determined Bartelstein is entitled to an award of attorneys’ fees which, given the nearly two decades of litigation, may exceed the value of BONY’s lien. It still remains to be seen whether BONY will appeal this costly decision. Any appeal would most certainly include an appeal of the attorney fee order. We’ll continue to keep you apprised of any developments.