17th Judicial Circuit Court, Winnebago County, Illinois Electronic Filing Rules

CRITICAL

Applies to

Fee petition

Fee petitions must be electronically filed when e-filing is mandated and submitted over the counter when it is not.

Fee Petitions, accompanied by a detailed invoice and proposed Order for Attorneys Fees, shall be e-filed in those cases where e-filing is mandated and be submitted over-the-counter in those cases where e-filing is not mandated.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Foreclosure mediation application

A homeowner seeking mediation must complete the application online by the applicable deadline or make alternative arrangements with the Program Administrator as the notice instructs.

Any Homeowner wishing to pursue mediation is to complete an application online before the application deadline set forth above in Section K. The application is to be completed online as instructed in the Notice of Mediation served with the Summons, or alternative arrangements are to be made with the Program Administrator as instructed in the Notice.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Order

Orders must no longer be submitted on paper or by email to the Judge, Trial Court Administration, or the Clerk.

Orders should no longer be submitted, whether in paper form or by email, to the Judge, Trial Court Administration, or the Clerk.

CRITICAL

Users must register with the Clerk and the authorized e-filing Vendor before electronically filing any document.

Prior to filing any document electronically, users are required to register with the Clerk of Court and the Court’s authorized e-filing Vendor.

CRITICAL

The Clerk of the Circuit Court shall accept and approve filings electronically through a Vendor or through the Clerk’s computer workstation.

The Clerk of the Circuit Court shall accept and approve filings electronically through a Vendor or through the Clerk’s computer workstation.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Valid pleading

The e-filing program must not prevent filing a valid pleading in conventional paper format.

At no time shall the e-filing program prevent or exclude the ability to file any valid pleading with the Clerk of the 17th Judicial Circuit Court in conventional paper format.

CRITICAL

Attorneys registering to e-file must provide the specified firm, attorney, contact, and payment information.

Attorneys mustregister with the Clerk of Court and shall at a minimum providethe following information: firm name, attorney names and ARDC registration numbers, address, phone number, email address for e-service, staff contact information, and a selected approved method for paying filing fees.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Briefs or memoranda of law

Briefs and memoranda of law filed with the Winnebago County Circuit Court must be submitted through Winnebago County’s Electronic Filing System.

No briefs or memoranda of law may be filed with the Clerk of the Winnebago County Circuit Court except for filings made through Winnebago County’s Electronic Filing System.

CRITICAL

Combined PDFs covering multiple cases or documents are not accepted, subject to the stated citation exception; separate case numbers require separate transactions, while documents in one case may be submitted together if uploaded and titled individually.

Bulk filings of multiple cases or multiple documents combined into one PDF document shall not be accepted; however, multiple citations being electronically filed may be transmitted to the Circuit Clerk as a single transaction directly from the law enforcement agency. Documents with different case numbers must be filed individually in separate transactions. Filing of individual documents within a case shall be accepted in a single electronic filing transaction; however, each individual document must be uploaded and titled individually in accordance with 17th Circuit Court General Order 9.09.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Document in confidential impounded or sealed case

Documents in confidential, impounded, or sealed cases must be filed conventionally with the Circuit Clerk’s Office.

All documents in confidential, impounded, or sealed cases must be submitted conventionally to the Circuit Clerk’s Office for filing.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Agreed or proposed order

Agreed and proposed orders in civil and family cases must be submitted electronically through the process established by the respective Circuit Clerk.

Effective immediately, submission of agreed or proposed orders on all civil and family cases is to be accomplished electronically via the process established by the respective Circuit Clerk.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Valid pleading

Electronic filing must not prevent or exclude conventional paper filing of a valid pleading.

At no time shall the ability to file electronically prevent or exclude the ability to file any valid pleading with the Clerk of the 17th Judicial Circuit Court in conventional paper format.

CRITICAL

The Clerk must provide e-filing workstations to attorneys and parties in e-filed cases during normal business hours at no charge.

The Clerk of the Circuit Court shall provide attorneys and parties in e-filed cases access to an e-file computer workstation. E-filing workstations shall be available during normal business hours and without charge.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Document requiring statutory filing fee

A document requiring a statutory fee for valid filing status must be e-filed in the same manner as other e-file documents.

The e-filing of a document requiring payment of a statutory filing fee to the Clerk of the Court in order to achieve valid filing status shall be filed electronically in the same manner as any other e-file document.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Judge courtesy copy

Judge’s courtesy copies must be submitted through eFileIL as separate documents in one e-filing envelope unless an e-filing waiver is granted.

2. Courtesy copies for the judge shall be submitted/delivered through eFileIL, as separate documents in the same e-filing envelope, unless an E-Filing Waiver is granted.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed order

Proposed orders must be submitted through eFileIL as separate documents in the same e-filing envelope unless e-filing is unavailable for the case type.

Proposed Orders shall be submitted or delivered through eFileIL, as separate documents in the same e-filing envelope, unless e-filing is not available for the case type.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Prove up packet

Prove-up packets must be e-filed as separate documents in one envelope and exchanged by 4:30 p.m. three business days before the hearing unless an e-filing waiver is granted.

1. Prove-up packets shall be submitted through eFileIL as separate documents in the same e-filing envelope and exchanged by 4:30 pm three business days before the hearing, unless E-Filing Waiver is granted.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Exhibits and photographs

Exhibits and photographs must be filed conventionally in Winnebago County and electronically in Boone County.

Exhibits and photographs shall be filed in a conventional manner in Winnebago County and electronically in BooneCounty.

CRITICAL

When e-filing is unavailable for a case type, papers must be delivered to Court Administration or by another method ordered by the presiding judge.

In the event e-filing is not available for the case type, papers shall be delivered to the Court Administration Office or by any other means ordered by the presiding judge.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Emergency protective order request

A remote emergency protective-order request may be filed from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. using illinoisprotectionorder.org or another electronic filing system.

A request for an remote emergency protective order may be filed during the business hours of 8:00am to 4:30pm using illinoisprotectionorder.org or another electronic filing system of choice.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Listed excluded documents

With exception to the Notice of Personal Identity Information Within Court Filing per Supreme Court Rule 15 effective January 1, 2012, and the Notice of Confidential Information With Court Filing per Supreme Court Rule 138, effective July 1, 2013, wills (or other testamentary documents), documents required to be maintained in original form pursuant to the Manual on Recordkeeping, and notices in entirely impounded, sealed, expunged, or confidential cases, in addition to individual documents to be sealed or impounded or documents that are filed directly with the judge (e.g. proposed orders) shall be filed in the conventional manner of filing and not by e-filing.

With exception to the Notice of Personal Identity Information Within Court Filing per Supreme Court Rule 15 effective January 1, 2012, and the Notice of Confidential Information With Court Filing per Supreme Court Rule 138, effective July 1, 2013, wills (or other testamentary documents), documents required to be maintained in original form pursuant to the Manual on Recordkeeping, and notices in entirely impounded, sealed, expunged, or confidential cases, in addition to individual documents to be sealed or impounded or documents that are filed directly with the judge (e.g. proposed orders) shall be filed in the conventional manner of filing and not by e-filing.

WARNING

A filer with an e-filing waiver on file may submit documents to the clerk, who must e-file them on the filer’s behalf.

The Circuit Clerk’s Offices have e-filing kiosks available to e-file documents. In the event there is an e-filing Waiver on file, the Circuit Clerk’s Office shall accept the document(s) and submit on the filer’s behalf.

WARNING

Applies to

Unapproved document type

The Clerk may reject electronically filed document types that have not been approved, including original wills.

The Clerk of the Court may reject any unapproved document type filed electronically by a subscriber, including but not limited to original wills.

WARNING

Applies to

Exhibit

In Boone County, exhibits not readily available electronically may be filed conventionally; parties should scan and e-file paper exhibits when possible and within size and scanning limits.

In Boone County, file exhibits not readily available in electronic form (e.g. blueprints, large maps) may be filed conventionally. If possible, however, a filing party should scan a paper exhibit and file it electronically, in accordance with the size and scanning limitations.

INFO

Applies to

Notice of appeal or post judgment enforcement document

Notices of appeal and post-judgment enforcement documents may be e-filed and served in accordance with the Supreme Court Rules.

Any notice of appeal or post judgment enforcement proceeding documents may be e-filed and served in accordance with Supreme Court Rules.

INFO

Applies to

Civil document

Electronic filing is permitted in civil proceedings in the 17th Judicial Circuit Court.

The 17th Judicial Circuit Court has been approved to accept the electronic filing of documents in civil proceedings.

INFO

The Clerk may accept subsequent electronic filings through an approved online Vendor or the Clerk’s workstation.

The Clerk of the Circuit Court may accept subsequent filings electronically through an approved Vendor online or through the Clerk’s computer workstation.

INFO

Applies to

Protective order petition

Protective-order petitions may be filed in person, by email, or online, with remote hearings also available as an option under the stated procedures.

These policies and procedures include the option to offer a remote hearing for a protective order. These policies and procedures are designed to follow the requirements set forth in the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, the Stalking No Contact Order Act, the Civil No Contact Order Act, and the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986 and to increase access to justice for litigants involved in the protection order process.

INFO

Self-represented litigants may e-file through an internet Vendor in the manner set by the Clerk.

Pro se litigants may utilize e-filing through a Vendor on the internet in the manner prescribed by the Clerk.

INFO

Electronic filing is authorized and encouraged in the designated cases.

The Circuit Court hereby authorizes and encourages electronic filing in each of the designated cases as identified in Section C above.

INFO

Applies to

Civil case

Electronic filing is permitted for civil case types except Will Filing cases.

This Court hereby authorizes all civil case types with the exception of W (Will Filing) as permissible electronic filing case types.