Before diving into whether a probate matter is necessary, let’s take a minute to understand what “probate” means. Probate is a legal process through the courts which accomplishes administration of a deceased individual’s (“decedent”) estate. A common misconception about the probate process is that it is only required where the decedent had a will at the time of their death. On the contrary, whether or not a probate matter is necessary depends on the type(s) of assets the decedent left behind and how those assets are titled. Probate is required if the following two factors are present in the decedent’s estate:

If the bank holding your mortgage has filed a foreclosure action against you and received a judgment of foreclosure from the Court, you will still have a significant amount of time in your home before you are required to vacate the premises.

In this article we will explain the Illinois appeals process. We will discuss what types of orders can be appealed, deadlines for filing appeals, how the appeal filing process works, what happens in an appeal once the case is filed, what actions the appeals court may order, and what your options are if you lose on appeal. Let’s start with a quick overview of the Illinois appeals system.