Forms of ownership glossary

Illinois joint tenancy must be expressly created and carries survivorship

The surviving joint tenant receives the deceased tenant's interest by the ownership form, but a lifetime transfer can sever that result.

Last updated: August 1, 2026

Joint tenancy: definition first

Direct answer: Joint tenancy is co-ownership in which the joint tenants hold undivided interests with a right of survivorship. When one joint tenant dies, that tenant's interest is absorbed by the surviving joint tenant or tenants rather than passing under the deceased tenant's will. Illinois requires the conveyance to expressly declare joint tenancy for covered land interests; otherwise, tenancy in common is the statutory default, subject to the Act's terms and exceptions.

Why it is on the exam: PSI expressly tests the implications of joint tenancy in Property Ownership. Illinois's current Joint Tenancy Act, including the amendment effective January 1, 2026, preserves the express-declaration and survivorship framework candidates must apply.

Creation in Illinois

Express declaration

Defining feature

Right of survivorship

Possession

Undivided right to the whole

Lifetime transfer

Can sever the transferred share

Let survivorship and creation language choose the form

Decision point	Joint tenancy	Tenancy in common
Illinois creation	Express joint-tenancy declaration required for covered conveyances	Default when no qualifying survivorship form is expressly created
At death	Interest passes to surviving joint tenant or tenants	Interest passes through the deceased owner's applicable estate or transfer process
Shares	Traditional four-unities structure uses equal joint interests	Interests may be equal or unequal
Unilateral conveyance	Severs the conveying owner's joint interest	Transfers the owner's existing tenancy-in-common share

Use the four unities to understand the traditional structure

The traditional joint-tenancy framework uses the unities of time, title, interest, and possession. Joint tenants acquire through the same instrument at the same time, hold equal interests of the same character, and share the right to possess the whole. Modern statutes and transaction methods determine the formal creation requirements in a particular state.

Illinois's exam-relevant rule is direct: the grant or conveyance must expressly declare that the interest passes in joint tenancy rather than tenancy in common. The phrase right of survivorship reinforces the intent but should be read with the full instrument and statute.

Time: interests arise together under the traditional structure.
Title: the same instrument creates the interests.
Interest: joint interests are equal in duration and character.
Possession: each joint tenant can possess the whole subject to the others.

Survivorship operates outside the deceased tenant's will

A joint tenant cannot devise the joint-tenancy interest to someone else at death because the interest does not remain in the probate estate for that purpose. The surviving joint tenant's ownership expands by operation of the survivorship feature, while recording and title procedures document the death and resulting title.

Survivorship does not erase liens, taxes, litigation, or every estate issue. The scope and survival of claims can require specific legal review. The basic exam answer is about who receives the joint interest, not a guarantee that title becomes free of every burden.

A lifetime conveyance can break the joint link

A joint tenant can generally convey that tenant's own interest. The transferee takes as a tenant in common, severing survivorship as to the transferred share. The conveying joint tenant cannot unilaterally transfer the other owners' interests.

With more than two joint tenants, a transfer by one can sever that share while the remaining original joint tenants preserve survivorship among their remaining joint interests. A complete exam answer should identify whose unity was broken rather than announcing that every relationship always disappears.

One of two joint tenants conveys

Question: A and B own Illinois land as joint tenants. A conveys A's entire interest to C during A's lifetime. What relationship ordinarily remains between B and C?

Best answer: B and C hold as tenants in common, and the former A-B survivorship is severed.

Why: C did not acquire the interest through the original joint-tenancy unity. A could transfer A's share but not B's. With only two original joint tenants, the transfer leaves B and C as tenants in common.

Lock in the distinction

Exam trap

Do not send a deceased joint tenant's share through the will before checking survivorship. Then check for a lifetime deed, partition, or other severance that may have ended the joint tenancy before death.

Memory cue

Joint at creation, survivor at death, severed by a lifetime transfer of the share.

Quick questions

Does Illinois presume joint tenancy?

No. For conveyances covered by the Joint Tenancy Act, tenancy in common is the default unless joint tenancy is expressly declared.

Can a joint tenant leave the share by will?

Not if the joint tenancy remains intact at death. The interest passes to the surviving joint tenant or tenants through survivorship.

Can one joint tenant sell an interest?

Generally yes. The transfer severs the joint tenancy as to that share, and the transferee ordinarily holds as a tenant in common.

What are the four unities?

Time, title, interest, and possession. They explain the traditional equal and simultaneous joint-tenancy structure.

Primary sources and review status

Checked through August 1, 2026. This definition is an exam-prep explanation, not a substitute for current law or advice about a live dispute. The current official source controls if the outline or Illinois rule changes.