Patsis v. Zion-Benton Township High School, No. 126

In Patsis v. Zion-Benton Township High School, No. 126, 234 Ill. App. 3d 232, 599 N.E.2d 531, 174 Ill. Dec. 747 (1992), the appellate court reversed the trial court's denial of the plaintiff's motion for voluntary dismissal, which was filed after the defendant filed a motion to dismiss based on the statute of limitations, because the plaintiff's motion was made not to avoid an adverse decision on the merits but because the defendant had earlier filed a separate contribution action against the plaintiff arising out of the same occurrence. Patsis, 234 Ill. App. 3d at 237. Allowing the plaintiff's motion for voluntary dismissal thus accomplished the salutary purpose of allowing the plaintiff's personal injury claim and the defendant's contribution claim to proceed in the same case. Regarding the plaintiff's motion for voluntary dismissal, the court said: "The plaintiff noted that another action was pending which was a better, if not required, forum for the consideration of his claim and that the consideration of his claim in that action would serve judicial economy." Patsis, 234 Ill. App. 3d at 237.