Court Rules

Court-wide rules

Applies court-wide

These 118 rules apply across Circuit Court of Cook County. Where this judge's own standing orders above address the same topic, the judge's requirement controls.

Communication

All 59
  • Contact
    Email

    Questions, comments, or concerns about the eFileIL e-filing system should be directed to Tyler Technologies at efiling.support@tylertech.com.

  • Contact
    Email to chambers

    Courtesy copies for Judge Daniel R. Degnan must be submitted via email to daniel.degnan@cookcountyil.gov.

  • Contact
    Phone to chambers
    Phone
    (312) 603-5943

    Judge Daniel R. Degnan's chambers phone number is (312) 603-5943.

Filing Timing

All 12
  • Deadline
    60 calendar days

    Attorney fee petitions for court-appointed attorneys must be filed within 60 days after final order or 6 months after service/cost, whichever is earlier.

  • Deadline
    2 business days

    Guardianship agreed order requests must be filed and submitted 2-5 business days prior to the scheduled court date.

  • Deadline
    2 business days

    Guardians must email annual reports and guardian training certificates in PDF format, one email per case, 2-5 business days prior to assigned court date.

Filing Requirements

All 11
  • Applies to
    Complaint
    Must include
    caption

    Chancery Division complaints must include specific caption designations based on the relief sought.

  • Applies to
    Motion
    Must include
    caption

    Motions to correct errors in criminal cases must be in writing, accompanied by affidavit, and notice must be served on the prosecution.

  • Applies to
    Complaint
    Must include
    caption

    All initiating papers must include the court name and department/division/district in the caption; small claims complaints must be endorsed 'Small Claims'.

E-Filing

All 9
  • Applies to
    Civil case filing

    E-filing is mandatory for all Cook County civil cases through the eFileIL system as of July 1, 2018, except Quasi-Criminal, Housing, and Wills cases.

  • Applies to
    Verified status report

    Attorneys must e-file a verified status report via Odyssey system before submitting decedent's estate agreed order requests.

  • Attorneys must maintain accurate email address in Odyssey e-filing system and be filed as attorney of record to receive entered orders via email.

About Judge James A. Wright

James A. Wright is a judge on the Circuit Court of Cook County, assigned to the Chancery Division. The Chancery Division handles equitable matters, including mortgage foreclosures and other civil proceedings.

Practitioners will find Judge Wright's standing order for Chancery Calendar 64, effective September 20, 2024, and updated February 10, 2026, along with a mortgage foreclosure case management status order from June 6, 2023.

Common questions about Judge James A. Wright's rules

Are courtesy copies required for Judge James A. Wright?

Courtesy-copy rule applies for all covered filings. Details: delivery by 4 colon 30pm 10 court business days before scheduled cout date. All courtesy copies are due by 4:30 PM, 10 court business days before the scheduled court date.

View ruleSource: page 9, section II. COURTESY COPIES

Does Judge James A. Wright require a pre-motion conference or letter before filing a motion?

Judge James A. Wright's rules set a pre-motion procedure for other. Piggy-backing a motion onto an existing hearing requires prior leave of the law clerk, courtesy copies, and proper notice of the motion to all parties.

View ruleSource: page 15

What page or word limits apply to motion brief before Judge James A. Wright?

Judge James A. Wright's rule states these limits: 15 pages. Excludes exhibits. Unless the Court orders otherwise, motions and briefs are limited to 15 pages, double-spaced, excluding exhibits.

View ruleSource: page 16

What must be included with pleading filings before Judge James A. Wright?

The rule requires caption and case number. All pleadings must include the full case caption, calendar number, and property address.

View ruleSource: page 3, section I. GENERALLY

What must be included with service notice filings before Judge James A. Wright?

The rule identifies required filing content or certificates. Service notices must include each attorney's or self-represented litigant's address, telephone number, and email address.

View ruleSource: page 3, section I. GENERALLY

How may parties contact Judge James A. Wright's chambers?

The rule addresses phone communications with Judge James A. Wright's chambers. The rule lists email ccc.mfmlcalendar64@cookcountyil.gov and phone (312) 603-7554. If a litigant or attorney cannot connect to a Zoom hearing, they must immediately call (312) 603-7554 and/or email ccc.mfmlcalendar64@cookcountyil.gov to notify the Court.

View ruleSource: page 5, section IV. COURT PROCEEDINGS

Does Judge James A. Wright require motion papers to be bundled?

No. The rule prohibits holding covered papers for bundling. Requests for a sealed-bid auction must be presented by separate motion.

View ruleSource: page 20, section JUDGMENT OF FORECLOSURE PACKET CONTENTS

When is a filing treated as filed before Judge James A. Wright?

The rule addresses filing timing, filing status, or cure windows. Properly served defendants must file an Appearance, Answer, or other pleading within 35 days of this order, or risk default.

View ruleSource: page 1, section IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AS FOLLOWS

What rule applies to service by mail for all parties before Judge James A. Wright?

Proof of service is required for the covered service rule. Details: method: service by mail, recipient: all parties. Plaintiff must send notice of the order to all defendants by U.S. Mail and any other reasonably calculated method within 3 days and retain evidence of mailing for court review.

View ruleSource: page 1, section IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AS FOLLOWS
Complete rules summary for Judge James A. Wright

Plaintiff must send notice of the order to all defendants by U.S. Mail and any other reasonably calculated method within 3 days and retain evidence of mailing for court review.

Properly served defendants must file an Appearance, Answer, or other pleading within 35 days of this order, or risk default.

Case dismissed with leave to reinstate without costs upon a motion supported by Bankruptcy Court documentation filed within 90 days of bankruptcy resolution.

Case dismissed with leave to reinstate upon a Motion supported by Affidavit filed and presented within one year of dismissal, should defendants default on the settlement.

All pleadings must include the full case caption, calendar number, and property address.

Service notices must include each attorney's or self-represented litigant's address, telephone number, and email address.

Self-represented litigants with an email address must designate a single service email and include it on all court documents and correspondence.

No party may appear without first filing an appearance, except for a petition to intervene.

Documents are timely filed if received before midnight on the deadline date.

E-filed submissions made under orders granting time to plead or setting briefing schedules are timely only if submitted by 4:30 PM.

If a litigant or attorney cannot connect to a Zoom hearing, they must immediately call (312) 603-7554 and/or email ccc.mfmlcalendar64@cookcountyil.gov to notify the Court.

Self-represented litigants may schedule one Zoom test run by calling (312) 603-7554 at least three business days before their court date, and must keep the appointment or call to cancel or reschedule.

Proposed orders should use court-supplied forms and be submitted to the Court as one PDF with the courtesy copy, not attached to any other document.

For continued motions, movants must submit a fresh set of courtesy copies to the Court's email before each new court date.

All courtesy copies are due by 4:30 PM, 10 court business days before the scheduled court date.

Scheduled court holidays are not counted as court business days when computing the courtesy copy deadline.

All electronic courtesy copies must be emailed only to ccc.mfmlcalendar64@cookcounteril.gov.

Physical courtesy copies will not be accepted unless ordered by the Court or an in-person hearing is set.

For in-person hearings set by court order, the movant must tender both physical copies to Courtroom 2810 and electronic copies to the designated email.

The courier should call the law clerk or administrative assistant upon arrival at courtroom 2810 so chambers staff can accept and confirm the physical courtesy copy delivery.

Physical courtesy copies will not be accepted on Fridays.

In mortgage foreclosure cases, after the order striking the case from case management (4331) is entered, parties have 8 months to complete written discovery, 14 months to complete oral discovery, 15 months to disclose expert witnesses, 17 months to complete expert witness discovery, must file ALL dispositive motions from ALL parties no later than 20 months, and the case must be set for trial no later than 24 months.

Engaging in loss to mitigate settlement discussions during discovery does not extend or toll the pretrial timeline unless the Court specifically orders a stay.

The Court may modify the case management timeline for good cause, either on its own motion or on a party's motion.

Plaintiff or plaintiff's counsel must submit a courtesy copy packet for each case management conference.

Motions to voluntarily dismiss a case due to full pay-off must be accompanied by a order dismissing the case with controverse.

A motion to appoint a speical process server must identify the process server's name, employer, and license number.

A motion to issue an alias summons must state the issue date and identify the person being served.

A motion for leave to amend or file a third-party claim must identify the specific changes and attach the proposed filing.

Motions to reinstate after a defendant's bankruptcy dismissal must attach proof of relief from the automatic stay, dismissal, discharge, or similar evidence.

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