Adukia v. Finney

State: Illinois

Court: 4th District Appellate

Docket No: 4-98-0882 Rel

Case Date: 07/31/2000

25 August 2000

NO. 4-98-0882

IN THE APPELLATE COURT

OF ILLINOIS

FOURTH DISTRICT

VINAY D. ADUKIA and RANJANA ADUKIA,
                    Plaintiffs,
                    v.
SANDRA J. FINNEY,
                   Defendant and Third-Party
                   Plaintiff-Appellant,
                    v.
THE CITY OF MATTOON, ILLINOIS, an
Illinois Municipal Corporation,
                    Third-Party Defendant-
                    Appellee.

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Appeal from
Circuit Court of
Coles County
No. 96L117

Honorable
Paul C. Komada,
Judge Presiding.

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PRESIDING JUSTICE COOK delivered the opinion of the court:

The issue in this case arose when the supreme court, inBest v. Taylor Machine Works, 179 Ill. 2d 367, 689 N.E.2d 1057(1997), struck down a statute that replaced joint and severalliability with proportionate several liability. Defendant hadrelied on proportionate several liability when she was sued anddid not file a third-party contribution action at that time. Defendant filed her contribution action after Best was decided,but the trial court dismissed the action on the basis that thestatute of limitations had run by that time. Defendant appeals. We reverse and remand.

The common law developed a doctrine of joint andseveral liability, under which, when two or more defendantstortiously contributed to the same indivisible injury, eachdefendant could be held jointly and severally liable for theentire injury. Under the doctrine of joint and several liability, a plaintiff may recover compensation for the full amount ofhis injury from any one of the defendants responsible for theinjury. Best, 179 Ill. 2d at 423, 689 N.E.2d at 1084. Theremedy for a defendant who has paid more than his pro rata shareof the common liability is found in the Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act (Contribution Act) (740 ILCS 100/2 (West 1998)), whichprovides a right to contribution from the other persons subjectto liability in tort. Once the underlying action is brought byan injured person, the contribution claim must be asserted bycounterclaim or third-party claim in that action or else it willbe barred. See Laue v. Leifheit, 105 Ill. 2d 191, 195-96, 473N.E.2d 939, 941-42 (1984). The common-law rule was essentiallyrestated in section 2-1117 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Code),as that section existed prior to 1995. 735 ILCS 5/2-1117 (West1994) (joint and several liability for medical expenses; defendant whose fault is less than 25% only severally liable for otherdamages).

In 1995, the legislature, by "An Act to amend certainActs in relation to civil actions, *** the Civil Justice ReformAmendments of 1995," Public Act 89-7 (Pub. Act 89-7,