2026 IL App (5th) 260228 No. 2026 IL App (5th) 260228
Rule 23 · Civil —Family Law
- ¶1 A successor judge deciding a family law case solely from trial transcripts may be reviewed de novo, not under deferential standards.
- ¶2 Reduced parenting time below 50% is not automatically a 'restriction' under section 600(i) absent a limitation or condition on time.
- ¶3 Useful for family law practitioners handling parenting time allocation appeals, GAL evidence disputes, and judicial succession/standard-of-review issues.
2026 IL App (5th) 260427 No. 2026 IL App (5th) 260427
Rule 23 · Criminal —Criminal Procedure
- ¶1 State's proffer merely reciting drug conspiracy elements is insufficient to prove a real and present threat under the Pretrial Fairness Act.
- ¶2 Generalized claims of community harm from drug distribution cannot substitute for specific, individualized evidence of dangerousness.
- ¶3 Useful for criminal defense attorneys challenging pretrial detention orders in drug offense cases where the State relies solely on offense facts.
2026 IL App (5th) 250228 No. 2026 IL App (5th) 250228
Opinion · Civil —Probate and Estate Law
- ¶1 Fifth District holds Illinois law, not Alabama law, governs distribution of Wrongful Death Act settlement proceeds despite heirs' Alabama domicile
- ¶2 Court applies Restatement two-step choice-of-law analysis, finding the state whose law produced the recovery has greater interest in equitable distribution
- ¶3 Useful for wrongful death, mass tort/asbestos, and probate litigators handling multistate settlement distribution and heir standing disputes
2026 IL App (4th) 260403 No. 2026 IL App (4th) 260403
Rule 23 · Civil —Family Law
- ¶1 Complete failure to engage in any recommended services supports unfitness findings under reasonable efforts/progress standards.
- ¶2 Denial of a continuance for a parent's unexplained absence from a fitness hearing is not reversible absent shown prejudice.
- ¶3 Useful for family law practitioners handling termination-of-parental-rights appeals and Anders/In re S.M. no-merit briefs in juvenile court.
2026 IL App (3d) 250429 No. 2026 IL App (3d) 250429
Rule 23 · Civil —Family Law
- ¶1 Circuit court impermissibly modified property disposition by shifting one spouse's financial liabilities onto other's proceeds share
- ¶2 Absent grounds to reopen judgment under section 510(b), courts cannot engraft new obligations onto vested property rights
- ¶3 Useful for family law attorneys litigating postjudgment enforcement of home sale provisions and proceeds allocation disputes
2026 IL App (4th) 250971 No. 2026 IL App (4th) 250971
Opinion · Civil —Constitutional Law
- ¶1 Fourth District reaffirms the enrolled bill doctrine bars judicial review of alleged three-readings rule violations in legislation.
- ¶2 Court declines to reach standing issue as moot once enrolled bill doctrine independently forecloses relief on the merits.
- ¶3 Useful for appellate and constitutional litigators challenging legislative procedure or defending statutes against three-readings rule attacks.
2026 IL App (1st) 251325 No. 2026 IL App (1st) 251325
Rule 23 · Civil —General
- ¶1 New opinion from Rule 23
- ¶2 Case decided on 2026-08-11
- ¶3 See full opinion for details
2026 IL App (1st) 250549 No. 2026 IL App (1st) 250549
Rule 23 · Civil —Property Law
- ¶1 A tax benefit like section 1031 capital gains deferral can constitute valid consideration for a quitclaim deed conveyance
- ¶2 Fiduciary duty between co-shareholders can extend to jointly used real property, but no presumption of fraud arises absent a dominant/servient relationship
- ¶3 Useful for business/real estate litigators handling intra-family or closely-held business disputes over property transfers, deed consideration, and fiduciary duty claims
2026 IL App (1st) 252466 No. 2026 IL App (1st) 252466
Rule 23 · Civil —Family Law
- ¶1 Section 603.10's serious-endangerment remedies are non-exhaustive, giving trial courts broad authority to order temporary relocation to protect a child.
- ¶2 Appellant's failure to provide hearing transcripts required presuming the omitted evidence supported the trial court's relocation and endangerment findings.
- ¶3 Useful for family law practitioners handling emergency relocation, serious-endangerment, or Rule 306(a)(5) interlocutory appeals where the record is incomplete.