June 27, 2017

by Lee Perres and Elisabeth Mohr
McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce, LLC – USFN Member (Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois)

On January 22, 2016, the Illinois Supreme Court entered Order M.R. 18368 announcing mandatory electronic filing (e-filing) for civil cases in Illinois. All cases filed in the Illinois Supreme Court and the Illinois Appellate Court require mandatory e-filing effective July 1, 2017.

Trial Courts

The order also mandates that, effective January 1, 2018, all civil cases shall be e-filed in the trial courts of all counties. Several counties have established mandatory e-filing prior to the January 1, 2018 deadline. Attorneys and self-represented litigants will be required to electronically file all documents in civil cases, except documents exempted by the Illinois Rules. The court will be barred from accepting any filings in paper form except in the event of an emergency.

As of June 1, 2017 the following mandatory e-filing start dates confirmed in the counties thus far are:

• DuPage County: January 1, 2016
• Jackson County: June 1, 2017
• Peoria County: July 15, 2017

Closing

The Supreme Court will be adopting rules governing e-filing and electronic service in accordance with the order. Please also note that Section 735 ILCS 5/5-127 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure provides that all charges related to electronic filing of documents and cases are taxable as court costs.

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June e-Update

Note for consideration of the USFN Award of Excellence: This article is not a "Feature."