Creating a memorandum and retaining it in your records will be sufficient to establish that the account is active. Specifically, we recommend documenting your interactions with the customer, including what was stated and by whom, account details, and the basis for your conclusion that the account is not inactive.

The Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act requires financial institutions to report and remit deposit accounts after five years of inactivity. 765 ILCS 1025/2(a) [Repealed effective 1/1/18]. However, an account will not be presumed abandoned if the owner “(3) Otherwise indicated an interest in the deposit as evidenced by a memorandum on file with the banking organization.” 765 ILCS 1025/2(a) [Repealed effective 1/1/18]. By creating and retaining a memorandum, as described above, your institution can establish that the account should not be presumed abandoned.

We also note that you may permit the customer to sign a written acknowledgement regarding the account by signing with an “X” signature or with a stamp. Illinois courts have upheld signatures by an X mark, even in the context of signing a will or trust, Bailey v. Clark, 203 Ill.App.3d 1017, 1021 (5th Dist. 1990), or signing a deed to real property, Witt v. Panek, 408 Ill. 328, 333 (1951). As stated in a recent Illinois case, “[m]arks of many different sorts may qualify as signatures, as long as the mark ‘manifests that the instrument has been executed or adopted by the party to be charged by it.’” Roti v. Roti, 364 Ill.App.3d 191, 196 (1st Dist. 2006).