(AFTER READING, see PART 2 about how to look up your case)
First, we hope that you and your family are healthy and safe. These are difficult times and we are forced to make adjustments. It is our hope that we might take one minor concern off your mind with this article while helping facilitate social distancing for yourself and others in the community. This article applies primarily to persons with non-DUI traffic citations from the Chicagoland counties of Cook, DuPage, Will, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Kendall, and DeKalb. If you have a case outside these jurisdictions or in another area of law, you can access the master list of court orders for Coronavirus/COVID-19 Official Update Page and sort the list by date to find your county’s most recent update. This guide is not meant to be a definitive guide. It is meant to give guidance about your approximate court date. YOU ARE ADVISED TO CHECK WITH THE CIRCUIT COURT CLERK OF THE COUNTY IN WHICH YOU HAVE YOUR CITATION TO VERIFY YOUR SPECIFIC COURT DATE AS THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS FOR CERTAIN ISSUES. WE ACCEPT NO LIABILITY FOR ANY MISUNDERSTANDINGS THAT THIS DOCUMENT MIGHT LEAD TO. AS TIME PROGRESSES, THE COURT ORDERS THESE EXPLANATIONS ARE BASED ON ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE IF CIRCUMSTANCES CHANGE.
Most courthouses will be updating all parties with notices but this is not necessarily the case across the board. If you do not live at the address listed on your ticket, you are likely to not receive your court date. As such, you should use this article in addition to PART 2 to determine what actions need be taken.
IDENTIFYING YOUR COUNTY
As a general rule, you should look at the courthouse mentioned on your ticket to know your county. If it is horizontally printed, it is located at the bottom or bottom right corner. If you ticket is wider than it is tall, it is most likely a Cook County ticket (this is true except for state police tickets which are always taller than wider). If it is taller than it is wide, you can find the courthouse underneath the portion the officer may have had you sign. We recommend you cross reference your courthouse location to our courthouse list page HERE. It is important to not rely solely on the county section at the top of the ticket while it is typically accurate, accuracy may vary. If you do not have a courthouse mentioned, you may need to speak to someone to review your ticket for what county you need to attend.
If you have any questions about your ticket, you can contact our office for assistance at (630) 445-2293 between 8:00am – 5:00pm, Monday through Friday for a free “walk-in” phone consultation. If these hours are inconvenient, you may request a call back at a time that is convenient for you by clicking HERE.
COUNTY/COURTHOUSE SPECIFIC UPDATES
Cook County (UPDATED 5/5/2020) – For non- DUI traffic citations in courthouses in Cook County including but not limited to the Daley Center, Skokie, Rolling Meadows, Maywood, Bridgeview, and Markham, all non-DUI traffic cases scheduled between March 17, 2020 and May 29, 2020 will be pushed to a later court date. Because there can be some discrepancies for what your new court date is, we recommend checking our other article for how to look up your court date. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent Cook County Court Orders HERE.
DuPage County (UPDATED: 4/28/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in Wheaton Courthouse, rooms 1001 and 1003 (may be identified as Glendale Heights Field Court), Downers Grove Field Court, and Addison Field Court, all court cases are cancelled between March 17, 2020 and May 15, 2020. They plan to reopen on May 18, 2020 though the Governor’s order is likely to change however no official cancellation has been made. All cases are to be continued 30-60 days from the currently scheduled court date. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent DuPage County Court Orders HERE.
Will County (UPDATED 4/28/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in Joliet Courthouse room 121, Bolingbrook Branch Court, Braidwood Branch Court, Lockport Branch Court, Peotone Branch Court, Plainfield Branch Court, Frankfort Branch Court, and Wilmington Branch Court, all matters between March 18, 2020 and May 15, 2020 are cancelled. All cases are to be continued to a court date set by the court with notice given to last known address though no specific date has been given. As of this writing, it is anticipated this will change because it preceded the Governor’s order extending COVID-19 measures through the end of May. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent Will County Court Orders HERE.
Kane County (UPDATED 4/28/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in Kane, Aurora, and Elgin Branch Courts, they will be cancelled from March 17, 2020 until May 29, 2020. All cases will be continued to a later date with the exception of certain emergency matters. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent Kane County Court Orders HERE.
Lake County (UPDATED 4/7/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in Mundelein Branch Court, Park City Branch Court, and Round Lake Beach Branch Court, court will be closed. All traffic cases schedule before May 18, 2020 will be continued to a later date after May 15, 2020. Additionally, all circuit court clerk activities moved to the Lake County Courthouse in Waukegan. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent Lake County Court Orders HERE.
McHenry County (UPDATED 4/28/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in the Michael J. Sullivan Judicial Center scheduled on or before May 29, 2020, there will be a new court date provided. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent McHenry County Court Orders HERE.
DeKalb/Kendall County (UPDATED 4/28/2020) – For non-DUI traffic matters in Kendall County Courthouse room 114 (rarely mentions room number on ticket) and Sycamore Courthouse, cases between March 18, 2020 and June 2, 2020 will be cancelled. They will be continued for a currently undetermined period of time as of the writing of this article. For a more detailed explanation and updates after the writing of this article, we recommend the most recent DeKalb/Kendall County Court Orders HERE.
We sincerely hope that this article has been helpful in advising you of your future obligations for your traffic matters. We recommend you check out PART 2 on how to look up your court case to stay up to date on these changes HERE.
