Full Text of SB2985 98th General Assembly
SB2985enr 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning civil law.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Probate Act of 1975 is amended by changing | 5 | | Section 25-1 as follows:
| 6 | | (755 ILCS 5/25-1) (from Ch. 110 1/2, par. 25-1)
| 7 | | Sec. 25-1. Payment or delivery of small estate of decedent | 8 | | upon
affidavit. | 9 | | (a) When any person , or corporation , or financial | 10 | | institution (1) indebted to or holding
personal estate of a | 11 | | decedent, (2) controlling the right of access to
decedent's | 12 | | safe deposit box or (3) acting as registrar or transfer agent
| 13 | | of any evidence of interest, indebtedness, property or right is
| 14 | | furnished with a small estate affidavit in substantially the
| 15 | | form hereinafter set forth, that person , or corporation , or | 16 | | financial institution shall pay the
indebtedness, grant access | 17 | | to the safe deposit box, deliver the personal
estate or | 18 | | transfer or issue the evidence of interest, indebtedness,
| 19 | | property or right to persons and in the manner specified in | 20 | | paragraph 11 of
the affidavit or to an agent appointed as | 21 | | hereinafter set forth.
| 22 | | (b) Small Estate Affidavit
| 23 | | I, (name of affiant) , on oath state:
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| 1 | | 1. (a) My post office address is: ;
| 2 | | (b) My residence address is: ; and
| 3 | | (c) I understand that, if I am an out-of-state | 4 | | resident, I submit myself
to the jurisdiction of Illinois | 5 | | courts for all matters related to the preparation
and use of | 6 | | this affidavit. My agent for service of process in Illinois is:
| 7 | | NAME..........................
| 8 | | ADDRESS.......................
| 9 | | CITY..........................
| 10 | | TELEPHONE (IF ANY)............
| 11 | | I understand that if no person is named above as my agent for | 12 | | service or,
if for any reason, service on the named person | 13 | | cannot be effectuated, the
clerk of the circuit court of | 14 | | ......(County) (Judicial Circuit) Illinois
is recognized by | 15 | | Illinois law as my agent for service of process.
| 16 | | 2. The decedent's name is ;
| 17 | | 3. The date of the decedent's death was , and I | 18 | | have
attached a copy of the death certificate hereto.
| 19 | | 4. The decedent's place of residence immediately before his
| 20 | | death was ;
| 21 | | 5. No letters of office are now outstanding on the | 22 | | decedent's estate and
no petition for letters is contemplated | 23 | | or pending in Illinois or in any
other jurisdiction, to my | 24 | | knowledge;
| 25 | | 6. The gross value of the decedent's entire personal | 26 | | estate, including
the value of all property passing to any |
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| 1 | | party either by intestacy or
under a will, does not exceed | 2 | | $100,000. (Here, list each asset, e.g., cash,
stock, and its | 3 | | fair market value.);
| 4 | | 7. (a) All of the decedent's funeral expenses and other | 5 | | debts have been paid,
or | 6 | | (b) All The amount of the decedent's known unpaid debts are | 7 | | listed and classified as follows (include the name, post office | 8 | | address, and amount) funeral expenses and the name
and post | 9 | | office address of each person entitled thereto are as follows : | 10 | | Class 1: funeral and burial expenses, which include | 11 | | reasonable amounts paid for a burial space, crypt, or | 12 | | niche; a marker on the burial space; and care of the burial | 13 | | space, crypt, or niche; expenses of administration; and | 14 | | statutory custodial claims as follows: | 15 | | ............................................................. | 16 | | Class 2: the surviving spouse's award or child's award, if | 17 | | applicable, as follows: | 18 | | ............................................................. | 19 | | Class 3: debts due the United States, as follows: | 20 | | ............................................................. | 21 | | Class 4: money due employees of the decedent of not more | 22 | | than $800 for each claimant for services rendered within 4 | 23 | | months prior to the decedent's death and expenses attending | 24 | | the last illness, as follows: | 25 | | ............................................................. | 26 | | Class 5: money and property received or held in trust by |
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| 1 | | the decedent which cannot be identified or traced, as | 2 | | follows: | 3 | | ............................................................. | 4 | | Class 6: debts due the State of Illinois and any county, | 5 | | township, city, town, village, or school district located | 6 | | within Illinois, as follows: | 7 | | ............................................................. | 8 | | Class 7: all other claims, as follows: | 9 | | ............................................................. | 10 | | (Strike either 7(a) or 7(b)). |
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11 | | Name and post office address | | Amount |
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12 | | (Strike either 7(a) or 7(b)). |
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13 | | 7.5. I understand that all valid claims against the | 14 | | decedent's estate described in paragraph 7 must be paid by me | 15 | | from the decedent's estate before any distribution is made to | 16 | | any heir or legatee. I further understand that the decedent's | 17 | | estate should pay all claims in the order set forth above, and | 18 | | if the decedent's estate is insufficient to pay the claims in | 19 | | any one class, the claims in that class shall be paid pro rata. | 20 | | 8. There is no known unpaid claimant or contested claim | 21 | | against the
decedent, except as stated in paragraph 7. | 22 | | 9. (a) The names and places of residence of any surviving | 23 | | spouse, minor
children and adult dependent* children of the | 24 | | decedent are as follows: |
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25 | | Name and |
Place of |
Age of |
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26 | | Relationship |
Residence |
minor child |
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| 1 | | *(Note: An adult dependent child is one who is unable to | 2 | | maintain himself
and is likely to become a public charge.) | 3 | | (b) The award allowable to the surviving spouse of a | 4 | | decedent who was
an Illinois resident is $..........
($20,000, | 5 | | plus $10,000 multiplied by the number of minor children and | 6 | | adult
dependent children who resided with the surviving spouse | 7 | | at the time of the
decedent's death. If any such child did not | 8 | | reside with the surviving
spouse at the time of the decedent's | 9 | | death, so indicate). | 10 | | (c) If there is no surviving spouse, the award allowable to | 11 | | the minor
children and adult dependent children of a decedent | 12 | | who was an Illinois
resident is $.......... ($20,000, plus | 13 | | $10,000
multiplied by the number of minor children and adult | 14 | | dependent children),
to be divided among them in equal shares. | 15 | | 10. (a) The decedent left no will. The names, places of | 16 | | residence and
relationships of the decedent's heirs, and the | 17 | | portion of the estate to
which each heir is entitled under the | 18 | | law where decedent died intestate
are as follows: |
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19 | | Name, relationship |
Age of |
Portion of |
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20 | | and place of residence |
minor |
Estate |
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21 | | |
OR |
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| 22 | | (b) The decedent left a will, which has been filed with the | 23 | | clerk of
an appropriate court. A certified copy of the will on | 24 | | file is attached.
To the best of my knowledge and belief the | 25 | | will on file is the decedent's
last will and was signed by the |
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| 1 | | decedent and the attesting witnesses as
required by law and | 2 | | would be admittable to probate. The names and places
of | 3 | | residence of the legatees and the portion of the estate, if | 4 | | any, to
which each legatee is entitled are as follows: |
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5 | | Name, relationship |
Age of |
Portion of |
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6 | | and place of residence |
minor |
Estate |
| 7 | | (Strike either 10(a) or 10(b)). | 8 | | (c) Affiant is unaware of any dispute or potential conflict | 9 | | as to the
heirship or will of the decedent. | 10 | | 10.3. My relationship to the decedent or the decedent's | 11 | | estate is as follows: ........................................ | 12 | | 10.5. (The following paragraph should appear in bold type | 13 | | and in not less than 14-point font): | 14 | | I understand that the decedent's estate must be | 15 | | distributed first to satisfy claims against the decedent's | 16 | | estate as set forth in paragraph 7.5 of this affidavit | 17 | | before any distribution is made to any heir or legatee. By | 18 | | signing this affidavit, I agree to indemnify and hold | 19 | | harmless all creditors of the decedent's estate, the | 20 | | decedent's heirs and legatees, and other persons, | 21 | | corporations, or financial institutions relying upon this | 22 | | affidavit who incur any loss because of reliance on this | 23 | | affidavit, up to the amount lost because of any act or | 24 | | omission by me. I further understand that any person, | 25 | | corporation, or financial institution recovering under |
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| 1 | | this indemnification provision shall be entitled to | 2 | | reasonable attorney's fees and the expenses of recovery. | 3 | | 11. After payment by me from the decedent's estate of all | 4 | | debts and expenses listed in paragraph 7, any remaining The | 5 | | property described in paragraph 6 of this affidavit should be
| 6 | | distributed as follows: | 7 | | Name Specific sum or property to be distributed | 8 | | The foregoing statement is made under the penalties of | 9 | | perjury*.
| 10 | | .........................
| 11 | | Signature of Affiant
| 12 | | Signed and sworn before me on (insert date). | 13 | | .........................
| 14 | | Notary Public
| 15 | | *(Note: A fraudulent statement made under the penalties of | 16 | | perjury is
perjury, as defined in Section 32-2 of the Criminal | 17 | | Code of 2012.)
| 18 | | (c) Appointment of Agent. If safe deposit access is | 19 | | involved or if sale
of any personal property is desirable to | 20 | | facilitate distribution pursuant
to the small estate | 21 | | affidavit, the affiant under the small estate affidavit all | 22 | | persons named in paragraph 11 of the
small estate affidavit |
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| 1 | | (excluding minors and unascertained or disabled
persons) may in | 2 | | writing appoint one or more persons as the affiant's their | 3 | | agent for that
purpose. The agent shall have power, without | 4 | | court approval, to gain access
to, sell, and distribute the | 5 | | property in the manner specified in paragraphs 7.5 and for the | 6 | | benefit of all persons named
in paragraph 11 of the affidavit; | 7 | | and the payment, delivery, transfer,
access or issuance shall | 8 | | be made or granted to or on the order of the agent. The affiant | 9 | | may appoint himself or herself as the designated representative | 10 | | to exercise the powers and perform the duties of an agent | 11 | | described in this subsection (c).
| 12 | | (d) Reliance and Release. Any person, corporation, or | 13 | | financial institution who acts in good faith reliance on a copy | 14 | | of a document purporting to be a small estate affidavit that is | 15 | | substantially in compliance with subsection (b) of this Section | 16 | | shall be fully protected and released upon Upon payment, | 17 | | delivery, transfer, access or issuance
pursuant to such a | 18 | | document a properly executed affidavit, the person or | 19 | | corporation is
released to the same extent as if the payment, | 20 | | delivery, transfer, access
or issuance had been made or granted | 21 | | to the representative of the estate.
Such person , or | 22 | | corporation , or financial institution is not required to see to | 23 | | the application or
disposition of the property; but each person | 24 | | to whom a payment, delivery,
transfer, access or issuance is | 25 | | made or given is answerable therefor to any
person having a | 26 | | prior right and is accountable to any representative of the
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| 1 | | estate.
| 2 | | (e) Distributions pursuant to an affidavit substantially | 3 | | in the form set forth in subsection (b) of this Section may be | 4 | | made to the affiant, if so specified in paragraph 11, | 5 | | notwithstanding the disclosure of known unpaid debts. The | 6 | | affiant, acting on behalf of the decedent's estate, is | 7 | | obligated to pay all valid claims against the decedent's estate | 8 | | before any distribution is made to any heir or legatee. The | 9 | | affiant signing the small estate affidavit prepared pursuant to
| 10 | | subsection (b) of this Section shall indemnify and hold | 11 | | harmless all creditors ,
and heirs , and legatees of the decedent | 12 | | and other persons , corporations, or financial institutions | 13 | | relying upon the affidavit who
incur loss because of such | 14 | | reliance. That indemnification shall only be
up to the amount | 15 | | lost because of the act or omission of the affiant. Any
person , | 16 | | corporation, or financial institution recovering under this | 17 | | subsection (e) shall be entitled to reasonable
attorney's fees | 18 | | and the expenses of recovery.
| 19 | | (f) The affiant of a small estate affidavit who is a | 20 | | non-resident of
Illinois submits himself or herself to the | 21 | | jurisdiction of Illinois courts
for all matters related to the | 22 | | preparation or use of the affidavit. The
affidavit shall | 23 | | provide the name, address, and phone number of a person
whom | 24 | | the affiant names as his agent for service of process. If no | 25 | | such
person is named or if, for any reason, service on the | 26 | | named person cannot
be effectuated, the clerk of the circuit |
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| 1 | | court of the county or judicial
circuit of which the decedent | 2 | | was a resident at the time of his death shall
be the agent for | 3 | | service of process.
| 4 | | (g) Any action properly taken under this Section, as | 5 | | amended by Public Act 93-877, on or after August 6, 2004 (the | 6 | | effective date of Public Act 93-877) is valid regardless of the | 7 | | date of death of the decedent.
| 8 | | (h) The changes made by this amendatory Act of the 96th | 9 | | General Assembly apply to a decedent whose date of death is on | 10 | | or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th
| 11 | | General Assembly. | 12 | | (i) The changes made by this amendatory Act of the 98th | 13 | | General Assembly apply to a decedent whose date of death is on | 14 | | or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th
| 15 | | General Assembly. | 16 | | (Source: P.A. 96-968, eff. 7-2-10; 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13.)
| 17 | | Section 10. The Safety Deposit Box Opening Act is amended | 18 | | by changing Section 1 as follows:
| 19 | | (755 ILCS 15/1) (from Ch. 17, par. 1501)
| 20 | | Sec. 1.
Upon being furnished with satisfactory proof of | 21 | | death of a
sole lessee or the last surviving co-lessee of a | 22 | | safe deposit box, the lessor
shall open the box and examine the | 23 | | contents in the presence of a person
who presents himself and | 24 | | furnishes an affidavit which states that (a) he
is interested |
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| 1 | | in the filing of the lessee's will or in the arrangements
for | 2 | | his burial, (b) he believes the box may contain the will or | 3 | | burial documents
of the lessee and (c) he is an interested | 4 | | person within the meaning of this
Act. The lessor shall not | 5 | | open the box in accordance with this Act if the
lessor has | 6 | | received a copy of letters of office of the representative of
| 7 | | the deceased lessee's estate , or other applicable court order , | 8 | | or a small estate affidavit in accordance with Article XXV of | 9 | | the Probate Act of 1975 . The lessor
need not open the box if | 10 | | (a) the box has previously been opened in accordance
with this | 11 | | Act, (b) the lessor has received notice of a written or oral | 12 | | objection
from any person or has reason to believe that there | 13 | | would be an objection,
or (c) the lessee's key or combination | 14 | | is not available. The lessor shall authorize a representative | 15 | | of a decedent's estate or a person designated in a small estate | 16 | | affidavit pursuant to Article XXV of the Probate Act of 1975, | 17 | | upon presentation of letters of office, other applicable court | 18 | | order, or small estate affidavit, to open the box and examine | 19 | | and remove the contents.
| 20 | | For purposes of this Act, the term "interested person" | 21 | | means any person
who immediately prior to the death of the | 22 | | lessee had the right of access
to the box as a deputy, any | 23 | | person named as executor in a copy furnished
by him of a | 24 | | purported will of the lessee, or the spouse, an adult | 25 | | descendant,
parent, brother or sister of the lessee. If the | 26 | | affidavit states that none
of the persons described above is |
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| 1 | | available to be present at the opening
of the box, the term | 2 | | "interested person" also means any other person who
the lessor | 3 | | in its sole discretion determines may have a legitimate | 4 | | interest
in the filing of the lessee's will or in the | 5 | | arrangements for his burial.
| 6 | | The lessor shall remove any document which appears to be a | 7 | | will or codicil
and deliver it to the clerk of the circuit | 8 | | court for the county in which
the lessee resided immediately | 9 | | prior to his or her death, if known to the
lessor, otherwise to | 10 | | the clerk of the
circuit court for the county in which the safe | 11 | | deposit box is located.
Delivery of a will or codicil called | 12 | | for herein may be made by registered
mail sent to the clerk of | 13 | | the said court.
The lessor may remove any burial documents and | 14 | | deliver them to the interested
person. No other contents may be | 15 | | removed pursuant to this Act.
| 16 | | The lessor is not required to look into the truth of any | 17 | | statement in the
affidavit required to be furnished under | 18 | | section one of this Act. The lessor's
determination of the fact | 19 | | situations to be met under this act shall be conclusive
and | 20 | | final. The lessor shall be fully protected in relying | 21 | | conclusively on it.
| 22 | | (Source: P.A. 83-642.)
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