Partipilo v. Hallman

156 Ill.App. 3d 806 (1987)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P was the owner of a parcel of real estate. For the tax years 1977, 1978, and 1979 the Cook County assessor's office mistakenly included a building, portions of a driveway, and a fence in its assessment of P's property when these improvements were located on D's property. As a result, the Partipilo property was over-assessed and the Hallman property under-assessed. Before discovering the error, P paid $ 26,467.10 in real estate taxes which should have been assessed against D. P sued D. P relied upon the general proposition that a person shall not enrich himself at another's expense. Under section 43 of the Restatement of Restitution, a person who, by payment to a third person, has discharged the duty of another or has released another's property from an adverse interest, doing so unintentionally or acting because of an erroneous belief induced by a mistake of fact that he was thereby discharging a duty of his own or releasing property of his own from a lien, is entitled to restitution from such other of the value of the benefit conferred up to the value of what was given, unless the other disclaims the transaction. The trial court granted P summary judgment and D appealed.