Bill Text: IL SB2829 | 2013-2014 | 98th General Assembly | Enrolled

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Amends the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that in a successful appeal under the Administrative Review Law of an adverse decision by a unit of local government, the court shall award the plaintiff all reasonable costs, including court costs and attorney's fees, associated with the appeal. Provides that if the court finds the decision by the unit of local government was clearly erroneous or that the plaintiff's rights to due process were abridged, the court may award the plaintiff all reasonable costs associated with the entire case dating back to the inception of the administrative proceeding.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8)

Status: (Passed) 2014-08-26 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 98-1105 [SB2829 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2013-SB2829-Enrolled.html

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AN ACT concerning civil law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by adding
Section 5-120.5 as follows:
(735 ILCS 5/5-120.5 new)
Sec. 5-120.5. Administrative review, code compliance.
(a) In an administrative review action under Article III of
this Code, if the court reverses the decision of a municipal
code hearing officer in an action set forth under subsection
(c) of this Section, then the court may award the plaintiff all
reasonable costs, including court costs and attorney's fees,
associated with the action if the court finds that: (i) the
decision of the hearing officer was arbitrary and capricious;
or (ii) the defendant failed to file a record under Section
3-108 of this Code that is sufficient to allow the court to
determine whether the decision of the hearing officer was
arbitrary and capricious.
(b) The court may award the municipality reasonable costs,
including court costs and attorney's fees, if the court finds
that the plaintiff's action under Article III of this Code for
administrative review of a decision by the municipal code
hearing officer is not reasonably well grounded in fact, is not

SB2829 Enrolled - 2 - LRB098 17209 HEP 52301 b
warranted by existing law, or is not accompanied by a
reasonable argument for the extension, modification, or
reversal of existing law.
(c) This Section applies only to the decision of a code
hearing officer that imposes a fine or penalty against the
owner of a single-family or multi-family residential dwelling
for a violation related to the condition or use of that
residential property. This Section does not apply to any
administrative decision of a municipality with a population of
more than 500,000.
(d) The provisions of this Section are mutually dependent
and inseverable; if any provision is held invalid, then the
entire Section is invalid.