Page 36 - John Hundley 2014

Hundley Acquires Sharp Law Firm

Mt. Vernon attorney John T. Hundley this month completed his acquisition of The Sharp Law Firm, P.C.
Hundley, a partner in the firm since 2005, said the firm now will be known as Sharp-Hundley, P.C., and will continue
to offer services in creditors’ rights, litigation, business transactions, probate, real estate and
family law.
Firm founder Terry Sharp will remain as a consultant to the firm. Others continuing to
assist in providing the firm’s services will include attorneys Rebecca Reinhardt and Darren
Taylor.
Hundley brings to the leadership of the firm 35 years of experience in civil litigation and
business law matters. A former partner with the international law firm now known as Mayer
Brown, Hundley holds the highest possible rankings for both legal ability and ethical conduct
from the nation’s leading lawyer-rating organization.
Hundley also is a member of the Leading Lawyers of Illinois and of the Super Lawyers of
Illinois. His articles on legal topics are widely cited by courts and commentators across the
country, and have been published in the American Law Reports, the DePaul Business Law
Journal, the Southern Illinois University Law Journal, the Chicago Bar Association Record,
and the Illinois Bar Journal. Hundley
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In Bouton v. Bailie, 2014 IL App (3d) 130406, the former homeowners argued that § 15(7) and the
lack of privity between them and the eventual purchaser meant that they could not be held liable for
alleged misstatements in the disclosure form they signed. Noting that § 15(7) requires, in the case of a
relocation-assistance middleman, that the previous owner execute a disclosure form and that the
middleman make it available to all prospective buyers, the panel rejected those arguments and held that §
15(7) immunized only the middleman, not the previous owner.
-John Hundley, Jhundley@lotsharp.com, 618-242-0200

Mechanic’s Lien Act Requires Strict Compliance

The failure of a mechanic’s lien contractor to have provided a sworn contractor’s statement properly
results in summary judgment for the defendant, a panel in the Appellate
Court’s First District held recently.

The court said that “regardless of equitable considerations, the rights
created under the [Mechanic’s Lien] Act are in derogation of the common law
and therefore the procedural and technical requirements of section 5 of the
Act [770 ILCS 60/5] must be strictly complied with in order for a mechanic’s
lien to be valid.” Cityline Constr. Fire & Water Restoration, Inc. v. Roberts,
2014 IL App (1st) 130730.
- John Hundley, jhundley@lotsharp.com, 618-242-0200

Brenda\SharpThinking\#124.pdf

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SHARP-HUNDLEY, P.C.

1115 Harrison, P.O. Box 906, Mt. Vernon, IL 62864 • Telephone 618-242-0200 • Facsimile 618-242-1170
www.thesharpfirm.com

Business Transactions • Litigation • Financial Law • Problem Finances • Real Estate • Corporate • Commercial Disputes
• Creditors’ Rights • Arbitration & Mediation • Estate Planning • Probate • Family Law

John T. Hundley: Jhundley@lotsharp.com; Rebecca L. Reinhardt: Rreinhardt@lotsharp.com;
Darren Taylor: Dtaylor@lotsharp.com; Terry Sharp: Tsharp@lotsharp.com

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