In re Estate of Casey
Appellate Court of Illinois
583 N.E.2d 83 (1991)
- Written by Jayme Weber, JD
Facts
In 1986, Milo Popovich (plaintiff) witnessed Warren Casey signing a letter. The letter discussed a $10,000 loan Popovich owed Casey. In the letter, Casey stated that if either party died before the loan was repaid, the remaining balance of the loan would be cancelled. However, Casey further promised that, if Popovich outlived Casey, then Casey would leave to Popovich 100 times the remaining balance of the loan. Casey concluded the letter by saying that Popovich was “very special” to Casey and had given Casey “two of the best years” of Casey’s life. After Casey died in 1988, Popovich sued Casey’s estate (defendant) seeking a portion of the estate in accordance with Casey’s promise in the letter. In the first count of the complaint, Popovich asserted that the promise made in Casey’s 1986 letter was an enforceable contract. Popovich claimed that the consideration for the contract was personal services Popovich had provided to Casey between 1984 and 1986, and the fact that Popovich had honored Casey’s requests not to take advantage of some opportunities that would have benefited Popovich. The trial court dismissed count one for failure to state a claim. Popovich appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (LaPorta, J.)
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