Court Rules
Common questions about Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division rules

Are courtesy copies required in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

Moving counsel must provide the court one courtesy copy of a filed bond modification request when a time-sensitive response is required.

View ruleSource: page 57, section (B) Motion for Bond Modification

Does Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division require a pre-motion conference or letter before filing a motion?

Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division rules set a pre-motion procedure for covered motions. Motions will ordinarily be decided without an oral hearing unless the Court orders otherwise.

View ruleSource: page 41, section Rule 4.9 – Motion Practice / Motions other than Summary Judgment

What page or word limits apply to brief in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division's rule states these limits: 20 pages. Supporting and opposing memoranda, including administrative appeals, are limited to 20 pages, excluding supporting documents, unless the Court grants prior leave.

View ruleSource: page 25, section Rule 3.1 – Page Limitations

What formatting rules apply to filings in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division's formatting rule includes 12 point type, double spacing, letter paper, typewritten or printed., at least 12 point type., sequentially paginated., filed without backing or cover., and exhibits are exempted.. All pleadings and motions must be typewritten or printed, double spaced, on 8½-by-11-inch paper, sequentially paginated in at least 12-point type, and filed without backing or cover; exhibits are exempt.

View ruleSource: page 13, section Clerk of Courts, Rule 2.3 – Filings

What must be included with expert report filings in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

The rule requires certificate of service. Expert reports generally may not be filed with the Court unless offered as evidence or for motion consideration, and the party serving a report must file a certificate of service.

View ruleSource: page 41, section Rule 4.8

What must be included with motion filings in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

The rule identifies required filing content or certificates. A memorandum stating a motion's grounds and cited authorities must accompany motions, but the requirement does not apply to court-discretionary motions such as motions to leave, extend time, or continue.

View ruleSource: page 41, section Rule 4.9 – Motion Practice / Motions other than Summary Judgment

How may parties contact Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

The rule addresses email communications with the clerk. The Clerk must post prominent notice of platform unavailability and provide the email address to use for filings during that period.

View ruleSource: page 19, section Exceptions to e-Filing

How does Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division handle sealed or redacted filings?

The rule does not state that a motion to seal is required for the covered filing process. A party must omit or redact personal identifiers from a case document before filing it and must submit the omitted or redacted identifiers on a separate form.

View ruleSource: page 14, section Clerk of Courts, Rule 2.3 – Filings

How do I request an adjournment or extension in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

Advance notice is not fully stated in the structured details. A party seeking an extension beyond the Consent to Plead / Move period, or unable to obtain agreement, must file a good-cause motion by the applicable deadline; a motion is required even with opposing counsel's consent when the extension exceeds the preceding limit.

View ruleSource: page 34, section Civil Practice, Rule 4.2 – Extensions

Is electronic filing required in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

No. Electronic filing is prohibited for the covered filings. Filing by fax is prohibited.

View ruleSource: page 13, section Clerk of Courts, Rule 2.3 – Filings

Are filing fees or waivers addressed in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

A fee is required for covered filings. Any deposit or filing fee due for an electronically filed document must be paid by credit card when the filing is submitted.

View ruleSource: page 17, section (D) Fees

When is a filing treated as filed in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

The rule states that filing is treated as on acceptance. A document is filed only when the Clerk accepts it into the case record.

View ruleSource: page 18, section (F) Availability of e-Filing -- Acceptance of Documents

What rule applies to service for initial pleading in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division?

The rule addresses service method, recipient, or timing requirements. Details: method: court service. A filing party submitting a complaint or other summons-requiring filing must also file service instructions, after which the Clerk issues summons and serves the filing accordingly.

View ruleSource: page 17, section (E) Filing of Initial Pleadings
Complete rules summary for Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division

Expert reports generally may not be filed with the Court unless offered as evidence or for motion consideration, and the party serving a report must file a certificate of service.

A memorandum stating a motion's grounds and cited authorities must accompany motions, but the requirement does not apply to court-discretionary motions such as motions to leave, extend time, or continue.

Appointed counsel must submit the prescribed fee motion, entry, certification, and Affidavit of Indigency to Court Staff within 30 days after final termination or disposition.

By agreement of counsel, a party may receive two leaves to plead or move totaling no more than 28 days, evidenced by a signed Consent to Plead / Move filed with the Clerk without court approval.

A party seeking an extension beyond the Consent to Plead / Move period, or unable to obtain agreement, must file a good-cause motion by the applicable deadline; a motion is required even with opposing counsel's consent when the extension exceeds the preceding limit.

A default-judgment motion must be accompanied by an affidavit confirming that the defendant is neither a minor nor incompetent and that the moving party complied with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

When a bankruptcy proceeding results in a stay of this Court's proceedings, counsel must file written notice of bankruptcy and submit a stay order.

A party must omit or redact personal identifiers from a case document before filing it and must submit the omitted or redacted identifiers on a separate form.

Under the labeled new version, documents may be submitted for electronic filing at any time, seven days a week.

When a post-indictment grand jury transcript is prepared, the requesting party must be billed at the rate applicable to the defendant's indigent or non-indigent status.

Original documents filed with the Clerk shall not be stapled.

All pleadings and motions must be typewritten or printed, double spaced, on 8½-by-11-inch paper, sequentially paginated in at least 12-point type, and filed without backing or cover; exhibits are exempt.

Filing by fax is prohibited.

A document will not be accepted for filing unless its caption states the court name, action title, case number, and requested action.

Every pleading, motion, and memorandum must state the filer’s name, address, telephone number, fax number, and email address.

Non-pro-se litigants must include their applicable Ohio Supreme Court attorney registration number in the signature block.

When counsel is an attorney firm, the filing must identify the attorney with primary responsibility and that attorney’s Ohio Supreme Court registration number.

Subsequent pleadings must identify a newly added party in the caption with the party’s name and address and the applicable designation of “new party plaintiff” or “new party defendant.”

Counsel and pro-se litigants must file written notice of any address change, including the Ohio Supreme Court attorney registration number for each attorney.

Motions, memoranda contra, and replies must follow the prescribed title formats.

E-filing is available in civil and criminal cases with limited exceptions, and counsel and self-represented persons must consult the Clerk's website to determine whether a case may be e-filed.

Documents submitted for filing must be filed in PDF, except proposed orders, entries, and other documents requiring a judge's or magistrate's signature; PDF documents may be hand-signed and scanned or electronically signed.

Proposed orders and entries, and other documents requiring a judge's or magistrate's signature, must reference the specific motion, be filed in Microsoft Word format, and contain no embedded mail merge fields or macros.

An electronically submitted document requiring an attorney's or submitter's signature, unless it is a hand-signed PDF, must use the conformed signature format "/s/ (name)."

A conformed signature on an electronically submitted document has the effect of a legal signature.

A submitting party or attorney must use the stated conformed-signature format when signing a document requiring multiple signatures.

An attorney seeking withdrawal must file a motion stating the reasons, including the client’s last current address and telephone number and a certification that the listed withdrawal conditions are satisfied.

The submitting party or attorney must affirm that all required signatories accept the document and indicate their agreement at the appropriate signature line.

An electronically submitted document requiring multiple signatures must identify each other signatory using the stated written-authorization format.

A document bearing a nonparty third-party signature must be electronically submitted as a hand-signed, scanned PDF.

More Judges in Champaign County Court of Common Pleas, General Division

Nick A. Selvaggio
Judge