American Ambassador Casualty Co. v. Jackson

Plaintiff, American Ambassador Casualty Company, as subrogee of Lillie Gray (Gray), brought this action in the circuit court of Cook County against defendant, Lonnie Jackson, for breach of a bailment contract. Defendant, a used automobile dealer, owned and operated A and Z Auto Sales (A and Z) in Chicago, Illinois. The trial court entered an ex parte default judgment against defendant, who was acting pro se, for failing to appear in court on the final scheduled trial date. Defendant filed a petition to vacate the default judgment pursuant to section 2 — 1401 of the Code of Civil Procedure…