NO. 4-03-0136
| CONSTRUX OF ILLINOIS, INC., an | ) | Appeal from |
| Illinois Corporation, | ) | Circuit Court of |
| Plaintiff-Appellee, | ) | Sangamon County |
| v. | ) | No. 99CH514 |
| BETTE KAISERMAN, Individually, as | ) | |
| Successor Trustee of the Louis | ) | |
| Kaiserman Trust and as Trustee as to | ) | |
| an Undivided 1/3 Interest in Parcel I | ) | |
| by Reason of Her Being Grantee in | ) | |
| Warranty Deed Recorded as Document | ) | |
| No. 89H030864; DONALD L. KAISERMAN; | ) | |
| HERBERT A. KAISERMAN, Individually | ) | |
| and in His Capacity as Grantee in | ) | |
| Warranty Deed Recorded as Document | ) | |
| No. 91019189 as to Parcel I; UNKNOWN | ) | |
| TRUSTEE OR SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE OF THE | ) | |
| RESIDUARY TRUST as Created by Item | ) | |
| Fourth of the Last Will and Testament | ) | |
| of MORRIS KAISERMAN, Deceased; JOHN | ) | |
| H. SHIPLEY; GENERAL ELECTRIC CAPITAL | ) | |
| CORPORATION; UNITED STATES OF | ) | |
| AMERICA; ROCHESTER STATE BANK; BANK | ) | |
| ONE, SPRINGFIELD, f/k/a Springfield | ) | |
| Marine Bank and Marine Bank of | ) | |
| Springfield, as Successor Trustee as | ) | |
| Noted in Item "Second," Paragraph | ) | |
| (C), of the First Codicil as to the | ) | |
| Last Will and Testament of MORRIS | ) | |
| KAISERMAN, Deceased; and UNKNOWN | ) | Honorable |
| OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS, | ) | Leslie J. Graves, |
| Defendants-Appellants. | ) | Judge Presiding. |
JUSTICE STEIGMANN delivered the opinion of the court:
In December 1999, plaintiff, Construx of Illinois, Inc.(Construx), sought to foreclose and enforce a mechanic's lienagainst property located at 302, 304, and 306 East WashingtonStreet in Springfield (subject property). In May 1999, whenConstrux entered into an agreement with John Shipley to make certain improvements to the building located on the subjectproperty, the property was under an installment sale contractbetween Shipley, as the purchaser, and defendant Bette Kaiserman,both individually and as a trustee, and her sons, defendantsDonald L. Kaiserman and Herbert A. Kaiserman, as owners. Following an October 2002 bench trial, the trial court entered an orderforeclosing and enforcing Construx's mechanic's lien.
The Kaisermans appeal, arguing that (1) the trial courterred by determining that they, as sellers under the installmentsale contract, were "owners" under section 1 of the MechanicsLien Act (Act), as opposed to lienholders under section 16 of theAct (770 ILCS 60/1, 16 (West 1998)); (2) section 16 of the Act,as applied, violates the equal protection clauses of the UnitedStates (U.S. Const., amend. XIV) and Illinois Constitutions (Ill.Const. 1970, art. I,