Coldwater v. Village of Elwood, 146 N.E.3d 748

In June 2007 the Village of Elwood enacted Ordinance No. 866 to annex two parcels owned by the Coldwaters; the ordinance recited an incorrect legal description for parcel B, resulting in a larger annexation than the parties’ annexation agreement contemplated.
The May 29, 2007 published notice matched the annexation agreement, but the ordinance and later recordings sometimes recited an incorrect description for parcel B.
The ordinance and plats were recorded multiple times between 2008 and 2017 in conflicting forms: some recordings contained the incorrect description/plat, others contained the correct description/plat.
The Coldwaters filed suit in December 2017 (second amended complaint April 2018) seeking to nullify the recent recording(s) containing the incorrect legal description; the Village moved to dismiss under section 2‑619(a)(5) (statute of limitations).
The Will County circuit court dismissed four counts as time‑barred under 65 ILCS 5/7‑1‑46 (one‑year limitations to contest annexation) and certified the question whether section 7‑1‑46 bars parties from correcting legal‑description errors after the one‑year period.
The Third District answered the certified question: section 7‑1‑46 bars parties to an annexation from correcting errors in the legal description of annexed property after the one‑year statutory period has passed; the court remanded for factual determination of when the annexation became "final."

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether 65 ILCS 5/7‑1‑46 bars parties to an annexation from correcting errors in the legal description of the annexed property after the one‑year statutory period	Coldwater: the one‑year contest period is inapplicable because they seek merely to correct a legal description to conform to the annexation agreement; alternatively, a five‑year enforcement period for annexation agreements (65 ILCS 5/11‑15.1‑4) applies	Village: any attempt to exclude property is effectively a contest of annexation and is barred after one year under section 7‑1‑46; the statute was intended to preclude all challenges after one year	Court: Section 7‑1‑46 applies broadly and bars direct or indirect contests (including corrections to legal descriptions) after one year from when the annexation became final; remanded to decide when annexation became final

Simmons v. Homatas, 236 Ill. 2d 459 (2010) (de novo review of certified questions of law)
In re Petition of the Village of Kildeer to Annex Certain Territory, 124 Ill. 2d 533 (1988) (section 7‑1‑46 gives one year to contest completed annexation)
Brunton v. Kruger, 2015 IL 117663 (2015) (statutory interpretation — give effect to plain language to ascertain legislative intent)
Hendricks v. Board of Trustees of the Police Pension Fund, 2015 IL App (3d) 140858 (2015) (consider statute as whole and subject addressed when interpreting language)