Frequently Asked Questions

An appeal can be filed within the district location in which your case was tried. The fees for an appeal are as follows:

Less than 100 pages	$110.00
More than 100 pages, less than 200 pages	$185.00
Each page in excess of 200 pages	$  .30

All locations have office hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

In the event of a bona fide emergency (a life is in immediate danger), a petition for an emergency order of protection may be filed at any suburban courthouse. If it is not an emergency, a regular order of protection may also be filed at the courthouse.

Depending on where the ticket was issued, the courtroom is assigned based upon the police agency involved. You may check our Online Electronic Case Docket Lookup or Mobile App to look up your court information.
 

The defendant or a representative must appear in court on the date of your summons. If a representative appears, that person must explain why the defendant cannot appear and request a continuance. Otherwise, the date must be advanced through the motion court of the specific district court in question requesting that the judge change the date. (A motion to advance cannot be filed in a case involving an accident, except for in District 2, where you may motion to advance as long as there was not any personal injury.)

The petition to expunge must be filed in the courthouse where the arrest was originally handled.
The non-refundable filing fee of $120.00 per District is payable to the Clerk of the Circuit Court by cash, money order, certified check, cashier’s check, or personal check.  (705 ILCS 105/27.2a)  Your Driver’s License, State I.D., or Matricular Consular number, telephone number, and case number should be written on the face of the check. 

The Clerk’s Office has six Districts: Chicago, Skokie, Rolling Meadows, Maywood, Bridgeview, and Markham.  If you file all of your petitions in one District at the same time, there is only one $120.00 filing fee.  If your cases originate from more than one District, you will pay a separate $120 filing fee in each District. $60.00 of the $120.00 filing fee must be forwarded by the Clerk of the Circuit Court to the Illinois State Police (ISP).  When the Illinois State Police receives your payment from us, it will evaluate whether to object to your petition for expungement and, if your petition is granted, it will process the court order and send you a letter notifying you that your Illinois State Police records have been expunged/sealed.

In addition to the $120.00 filing fee, you are required to pay a $15.00 mailing fee plus the cost of postage.  (705 ILCS 105/27.2a). 

If required in the District in which you are filing, you will also be charged $9.00 per certified copy for each disposition (copy of the Clerk’s Office’s docket for each criminal case on your record).  This is also payable to the Clerk of the Circuit Court. 

Districts Two through Six do not require that you attach a copy of your rap sheet to your petition.  However, if you are filing your petition in District 6, Markham, the Presiding Judge requires that you attach the certified copies of your dispositions to your petition. 

Please review the Expungement and Sealing Packet for more details on filing and paying for expungement and or sealing.

All locations have procedures designed to allow an individual eighteen years or older to represent themselves in lawsuits to recover claims of $1,500.00 or less. These individuals who are not represented by an attorney are called "pro se" litigants. For more information refer to the Clerk of the Circuit Court Self Represented (Pro Se) Resources page. Information on additional resources at the suburban courthouses is available here.
 

Form CCG 0603 contains the complete fee schedule.

A garnishment is an order issued from a court to withhold wages, credit, or other properties usually held by a third party associated with the debtor involved in a lawsuit.

A will can be filed in the Civil Department of any of the listed suburban locations, or in the Probate Division, located on the 12th Floor of the Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington, Chicago, IL.