Circuit Court of Cook County Filing Fees and Waivers

E-filing fees payable via credit/debit card, ACH, or other Clerk-authorized methods.

Source text: _Payment of Fees_. Whenever documents are filed electronically that require the payment of a filing fee, the person who files the documents shall provide at that time, for payment of the fee: i. such credit or debit card information as shall be required at the Website to permit a card to be charged by the Clerk's Office; or ii. such information as shall be required at the Website to permit an automated clearing house (ACH) debit to be made; or iii. any other form of payment authorized by the Clerk.

Statutory filing fees apply to e-filed documents; fee-free documents also allowed.

Source text: _Filing fees_. The Clerk's Office shall collect all applicable statutory filing fees for documents filed by means of the EFM. The EFM shall also allow the filing of documents for which a filing fee is not required.

Transcript fees are capped at $1.80/$0.50 per page (regular) and $2.10/$0.75 per page (expedited) for original/copy respectively.

Source text: Remuneration for court reporting services shall be limited to the schedule of fees set by the Illinois Supreme Court as contained in the Uniform Schedule of Charges for Official Court Reporters' Transcripts. Pursuant to this Schedule, all charges for transcripts will be computed on a per page basis. The charges for regular copy delivery are $1.80 per page for the original and $.50 per page for a copy. For expedited copies (daily copy delivery), the charges are $2.10 per page for the original and $.75 per page for a copy.

Civil case initiating parties must pay a $2 Dispute Resolution Fund fee when filing first pleading; waived for local government proceedings.

Source text: The circuit clerk shall charge and collect a Dispute Resolution Fund fee of TWO DOLLARS ($2.00) in all civil cases. Such fee shall be paid by the party initiating the action at the time of filing the first pleading. Such fees shall not be charged in any proceeding commenced on behalf of a unit of local government.

Clerk must accept partial payments of court-ordered fines/fees/costs; additional $15 Court Automation and Document Storage fees assessed in guilty finding cases.

Source text: Effective immediately, the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County shall accept partial payments from defendants of the fines, fees, costs, reimbursements and other monetary penalties ordered by the court in matters involving criminal and non-traffic quasi-criminal offenses. Effective January 1, 2005, the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County shall also accept partial payments from defendants of the fines, fees, costs, reimbursements and other monetary penalties ordered by the court in all matters involving traffic offenses. The Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County shall accept partial payments of fines, fees, costs, reimbursements and other monetary penalties without being specifically so directed by the court. Effective immediately, whenever in a felony, traffic, misdemeanor, municipal ordinance, or conservation case, after a finding of guilty, whether by stipulation to the facts, plea of guilty or conviction after trial, and after entry of judgment on the finding the defendant is granted court supervision or probation or is assessed a fine, there shall be assessed against the defendant two additional fees of $15.00 each, designated as a Court Automation Fee and a Document Storage Fee. These fees are over and above any other amount assessed by the Court as a fine, cost or fee in its judgment order and shall be added on and collected by the Clerk of the Circuit Court.

Minimum fines for parking tickets in Municipal District 1 are $10, $15, or $25 depending on violation type.

Source text: The following schedule is established for fines and appearances in actions for traffic violations in the Municipal Department of the Circuit Court of Cook County, pursuant to the authority conferred in Circuit Court Rule 11.2. 1. District 1, Municipal Department a. Parking Tickets - Minimum Fines: i. $10.00 - Parking meter violation 27-329. ii. $15.00 - 27-308A and other parking violations not listed for $10.00, $25.00, $50.00 or $100.00. iii. $25.00 - Violations as follows: 27-308D, 27-311-1 through 27-311-19, 27-316, 27-318, 27-320 through 27-322, 27-326, 27-353, 27-372.

Plaintiffs and defendants must pay the difference in filing/appearance fees when a case is transferred to a department/division/district with higher fees.

Source text: When an action is transferred from one department, division or district to another department, division or district and the fee required in the department, division or district to which the action is transferred is greater than the fee required in the department, division or district where the action was originally filed, the plaintiff shall pay a fee in an amount equal to the amount the plaintiff would have been required to pay had the plaintiff filed the action in the department, division or district to which the action is transferred, less the amount of the original filing fee paid, and the defendant and each defendant, if separate appearances have been filed, shall pay a fee in an amount equal to the amount the defendant would have been required to pay had the defendant filed his/her appearance in the department, division or district to which the action is transferred, less the amount of the original appearance fee paid.

Vendor service fees are separate from Clerk's filing fees and retained by the vendor.

Source text: _Vendor service fees_. Fees charged to filers by a vendor for vendor services, including, but not necessarily limited to, convenience fees and fees for accepting electronic payment, are solely the property of the vendor and in addition to any fees required by law to be collected by the Clerk.

E-filed documents certified conventionally at Clerk's Office M-F 8:30a-4:30p excluding holidays; fee per statute.

Source text: 8. Certification of Electronic Documents. The Clerk shall only certify electronically filed documents conventionally at the Clerk's Office, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., excluding court holidays. The cost of certification is governed by the Clerks of Courts Act, 705 ILCS 105/27.2, 27.2a.