770 ILCS 55

in effect

770 ILCS 55/0.01

(770 ILCS 55/0.01) (from Ch. 82, par. 48.9) Sec. 0.01. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Liens Against Railroads Act. (Source: P.A. 86-1324.)

(770 ILCS 55/1) (from Ch. 82, par. 49) Sec. 1. All persons who may have furnished or who shall hereafter furnish to any railroad corporation now existing or hereafter to be organized under the laws of this State, any fuel, ties, material, supplies, or other article or thing necessary for the construction, maintenance, operation or repair of such roads, by contract with said corporation, or who shall have done and performed or shall hereafter do and perform any work or labor for such construction, maintenance, operation or repair by like contract, shall be entitled to be paid for the same as part of the current expenses of said road; and in order to secure the same, shall have a lien upon all the property, real, personal and mixed, of said railroad corporation as against such railroad, and as against all mortgages or other liens which shall accrue after the commencement of the delivery of said articles, or the commencement of said work or labor; provided, suit shall be commenced within 6 months after such contractor or laborer shall have completed his contract with said railroad corporation, or after such labor shall have been performed or material furnished. (Source: P.A. 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)

770 ILCS 55/2

(770 ILCS 55/2) (from Ch. 82, par. 50) Sec. 2. Every person who shall hereafter, as sub-contractor, material man, or laborer, furnish to any contractor with any such railroad corporation any fuel, ties, materials, supplies, or any other article or thing, or who shall do and perform any work or labor for such contractor in conformity with any terms of any contract, express or implied, which such contractor may have made with any such railroad corporation, shall have a lien upon all the property, real, personal and mixed, of said railroad corporation: Provided, such sub-contractor, material man or laborer shall have complied with the provisions of this act; but the aggregate of all liens hereby authorized shall not, in any case, exceed the price agreed upon in the original contract to be paid by such corporation to the original contractor: And, provided further, that no such lien shall take priority over any existing lien. (Source: Laws 1871-2, p. 279.)

770 ILCS 55/3

(770 ILCS 55/3) (from Ch. 82, par. 51) Sec. 3. The person performing such labor, or furnishing such material, shall cause a notice, in writing, to be served on the president or secretary of such railroad corporation, substantially as follows, viz.: To .... president, (or secretary, as the case may be) of the ....: You are hereby notified that I am (or have been) employed by .... as a laborer (or have furnished supplies, as the case may be) on or for the .... and that I shall hold all the property of said railroad, (or railway, as the case may be) company to secure my pay. If there shall be a contract in writing between the original contractor and sub-contractor, material man or laborer, a copy of such contract, if the same can be obtained, shall be served with such notice and attached thereto, which notice shall be served at any time within twenty days after the completion of such sub-contract, or such labor: Provided, that no lien shall attach in favor of any person performing such labor or furnishing material until such notice shall have been served as above, or filed for record as hereinafter provided. (Source: Laws 1871-2, p. 279.)

770 ILCS 55/4

(770 ILCS 55/4) (from Ch. 82, par. 52) Sec. 4. If neither the president or the secretary of such railroad corporation shall reside or can be found in the county in which the sub-contract was made, or labor performed, the laborer, or person furnishing labor or material, shall file said notice in the office of the clerk of the circuit court; and the clerk of the circuit court shall file and keep a record of said notice, and cause a copy of the same to be mailed to the president or secretary of said company, for which he shall receive the sum of twenty-five cents, and said clerk shall keep a list of the names of the persons so claiming lien, and the names of the corporation against which such liens are claimed. (Source: Laws 1871-2, p. 279.)

770 ILCS 55/5

(770 ILCS 55/5) (from Ch. 82, par. 53) Sec. 5. If the money due the person having given notice shall not be paid within 10 days after the money shall become due and payable, then such person may commence an action therefor, in the circuit court, against the corporation with which the original contract was made; or he or she may commence an action, against such railroad corporation and original contractor jointly, and enforcement may be had as in other civil cases. (Source: P.A. 83-346.)

770 ILCS 55/6

(770 ILCS 55/6) (from Ch. 82, par. 54) Sec. 6. Whenever any suit, so brought, shall be determined in favor of the plaintiff, the court shall allow $20 attorney's fees to be taxed as costs. (Source: Laws 1965, p. 3586.)

770 ILCS 55/7

(770 ILCS 55/7) (from Ch. 82, par. 55) Sec. 7. Should the original contractor in any case fail to complete the contract, any person entitled to a lien may file a complaint in the circuit court in any county through which the road may be constructed, against the railroad corporation and the contractors, setting forth the nature of his claim, and the amount due as near as may be, and the fact that the contractor has failed to complete the contract. The clerk of that court shall thereupon cause a notice to be published for 4 successive weeks in a newspaper printed in the county, setting forth that the complaint has been filed, and the time when process issued on the same shall have been made returnable, and all persons entitled to liens under this act may enter their appearance and interplead in the cause, and have their claims adjudicated; and it shall be the duty of the court, in case the petitioner or claimants, or either of them, establish their claims, to enter a judgment against the corporation and original contractor, for the amount to which the persons so establishing their claims are respectively entitled, and such judgment shall have the same force and effect as judgments in other civil cases. (Source: P.A. 83-346.)

770 ILCS 55/8

(770 ILCS 55/8) (from Ch. 82, par. 56) Sec. 8. The lien hereby created shall continue for 3 months from the time of the performance of the sub-contract, or doing of the work or furnishing the material as aforesaid, except when suit shall be commenced by petition as aforesaid, and in such cases all liens shall be barred by the judgment entered in such cause. (Source: P.A. 79-1358.)

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs.aspFetched: 10/17/2026