97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB1050

 

Introduced 01/31/11, by Rep. Robert W. Pritchard

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
15 ILCS 305/5.15

    Amends the Secretary of State Act. Adds that a depositor, an attorney licensed or formerly licensed to practice in the State or his or her representative, may deposit a will with the Secretary of State by certified mail. Provides that a depositor is responsible for any postage or delivery costs associated with the deposit of a will by certified mail. Provides that a depositor must prepay any postage or delivery costs associated with the mailing of a receipt by the Secretary of State to verify the deposit of the will. Makes conforming changes.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Secretary of State Act is amended by
5changing Section 5.15 as follows:
 
6    (15 ILCS 305/5.15)
7    Sec. 5.15. Deposit of wills.
8    (a) Definitions. As used in this Section:
9    "Date of deposit" means the date that a will is deposited
10in person or the date that a will mailed by certified mail is
11received by the Secretary of State.
12    "Depositor" means an attorney licensed or formerly
13licensed to practice in the State of Illinois, the attorney's
14representative, the guardian for the attorney, or the personal
15representative of the attorney's decedent's estate.
16    "Testator" means a person who executed a will, other than
17as a witness or official to whom acknowledgment of signing was
18given.
19    "Will" refers to an original:
20        (1) will;
21        (2) codicil;
22        (3) will and one or more codicils;
23        (4) trust; or

 

 

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1        (5) trust and one or more trust amendments.
2    (b) Deposit of wills. A depositor may deposit a will with
3the Secretary of State in person or by certified mail, return
4receipt requested, if the depositor certifies in writing to the
5Secretary of State that the depositor is unable to locate the
6testator after a diligent search. The certification shall be on
7a form to be provided by the Secretary. No later than 90 days
8after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th
9General Assembly, the form must be made available on the
10Secretary of State's official website. This Section applies
11whether it is known or unknown whether the testator is living.
12    (c) Assumptions. The Secretary of State may assume, without
13inquiring into the facts, that the depositor has first made a
14diligent search for the testator.
15    (d) Fee. The Secretary of State shall collect a fee of $15
16for each deposit of a will. The Secretary of State shall not
17collect a separate fee for additional documents concurrently
18deposited in relation to a single testator or for a single
19joint will prepared for a husband and wife. If the deposit is
20made by certified mail, then the $15 fee must be mailed with
21the will.
22    (d-5) Postage and delivery costs. A depositor is
23responsible for any postage or delivery costs associated with
24the deposit of a will by certified mail and the mailing of a
25receipt verifying the deposit of a will under paragraph (1) of
26subsection (e). A depositor must prepay any postage or delivery

 

 

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1costs associated with the receipt verifying the deposit of a
2will.
3    (e) Duty of Secretary of State upon receipt. Upon receipt
4of a will under this Section, the Secretary of State shall:
5        (1) provide the depositor with a receipt for the will
6    at the time of deposit, if the deposit is made in person,
7    or within 10 business days after the will is received by
8    the Secretary of State if the deposit is made by certified
9    mail and the depositor has prepaid any postage or delivery
10    fees as required under subsection (d), which receipt shall
11    contain the information designated on the envelope in
12    accordance with paragraph (3) of this subsection;
13        (2) place the will or wills deposited concurrently in
14    relation to a single testator in one envelope and seal the
15    envelope securely and, if the will is deposited in person
16    by the depositor or the depositor's agent, the envelope
17    must be sealed in the presence of the depositor or
18    depositor's agent;
19        (3) designate on the envelope:
20            (A) the date of deposit;
21            (B) the name, address, and telephone number of the
22        depositor;
23            (C) the name and last known address of the testator
24        as provided by the depositor;
25            (D) at the depositor's option, any and all of the
26        following information:

 

 

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1                (i) alternate names by which the testator may
2            have been known;
3                (ii) the testator's birth date, and
4                (iii) the last 4 digits of the testator's
5            Social Security number; and
6            (E) with respect to each document enclosed:
7                (i) a short description of the document,
8            including, if shown, its date of execution; and
9                (ii) the number of pages in the document; and
10        (4) index the will alphabetically by the name of the
11    testator, and by the alternate names set forth by which the
12    testator may have been known.
13    (f) Status as a public record. An envelope and will
14deposited under this Section are not public records. The index
15created under item (4) of subsection (e) is a public record.
16    (g) Duty of Secretary of State during testator's lifetime.
17During the testator's lifetime, the Secretary of State shall:
18        (1) keep the envelope containing the will sealed; and
19        (2) deliver the envelope to:
20            (i) the testator;
21            (ii) a person authorized, in writing signed by the
22        testator and notarized, to receive the envelope; or
23            (iii) a person, entity, court, or government
24        agency authorized to receive the envelope pursuant to
25        an order entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
26    (h) Duty of Secretary of State upon notification of death

 

 

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1of testator. If the Secretary of State has custody of the will
2after the death of the testator and is notified of the death of
3the testator by means of a certified copy of the testator's
4death certificate or by a certified copy of an order of court
5determining the testator to be deceased, upon receipt of
6payment of a retrieval fee in the amount of $10, the Secretary
7of State shall promptly deliver the sealed will envelope to the
8clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the probate
9of the testator's will may occur as determined under Section
105-1 of the Probate Act of 1975 (755 ILCS 5/5-1).
11    (i) Duties of Secretary of State upon inquiry. Upon inquiry
12by a person identified in paragraph (2) of subsection (g), or
13upon inquiry of any person presenting a certified copy of the
14testator's death certificate or a certified copy of an order of
15a court determining the testator to be deceased, the Secretary
16of State shall inform the person whether the name of the
17relevant testator appears in the Secretary of State's index of
18wills. For the purposes of this subsection, the Secretary of
19State need not be certain that the testator is the one being
20inquired about, but may release that information if it is
21possible that the testator is that one.
22    (j) Destruction of will. The Secretary of State may destroy
23a will deposited under this Section if:
24        (1) the Secretary of State has not received notice of
25    the death of the testator; and
26        (2) at least 100 years have passed since the date the

 

 

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1    will was deposited.
2    (k) All fees received by the Secretary of State under this
3Section must be deposited into the Secretary of State Special
4Services Fund.
5(Source: P.A. 96-137, eff. 1-1-10.)