Your trial date is set, and something has changed. A medical emergency, an unavailable witness, incomplete discovery, or another serious conflict may make the trial date difficult or impossible to keep.
In Illinois family court, a judge can move a trial date, but a continuance is not automatic. The strongest requests are specific, documented, and raised as soon as the conflict becomes known. Courts look closely at diligence: what you did to move the case forward before asking for more time.
A continuance also has practical consequences. Moving the trial date does not pause the temporary orders already in place. Support, parenting time, and possession of the marital home may remain controlled by existing temporary orders until the court changes them, enters a final judgment, or dismisses the case.
Key Takeaways
- You must appear when your case is set for trial unless the court changes the date. Missing court can lead to a default order, dismissal, or a body attachment, which is a court order authorizing the sheriff to bring you to court.
- Dismissal terminates temporary orders entered under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act, including temporary support and other temporary relief entered while the case is pending.
- A continuance is a request, not an entitlement. Illinois courts focus heavily on diligence, including whether you moved the case forward before the conflict arose.
- Once your case is reached for trial, the judge will not hear the motion until you explain why the request was not made earlier.
- Missing evidence can support a continuance, but Rule 231(a) requires a sworn affidavit, and the judge may deny the motion even when an affidavit is filed.
- An agreed motion filed early with a proposed new date gives the court a cleaner procedural path than a last-minute contested request.
What Happens If You Miss Court in an Illinois Divorce or Custody Case
You must appear when your case is set for hearing or trial, or when the last court order requires your appearance. That obligation continues until the court changes the date.
Not every court date requires you to appear personally. Hearings, pre-trials, and trials usually do, along with any direct order from the court.
If you miss a mandatory court date, the judge has several options. The judge may enter a default order in favor of the other side, dismiss your case for want of prosecution, or issue a body attachment. A body attachment is a court order authorizing the sheriff to bring you to court.
Dismissal carries a further cost. Temporary orders entered under the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act terminate when the court enters a final judgment or when the petition is dismissed. That includes temporary relief orders entered while the case is pending, such as temporary support, child custody or parenting arrangements, or exclusive possession of the marital home.
If you cannot appear, contact your attorney before the court date so a written motion can be filed and presented to the judge.
Will an Illinois Judge Reschedule a Divorce or Custody Trial
Sometimes. A continuance is a request for more time, not a right to a new date. After you present your case as to why a continuance is needed, a judge will determine whether the reason, timing, and history of the case justify moving the trial.
Illinois courts treat diligence as a central factor. The court looks at whether you acted promptly, complied with discovery, prepared the case, and raised the conflict as soon as it became known. A first request supported by documentation is different from a repeated request made close to trial.
A judge may be more willing to continue a motion hearing than a trial. A trial date is time the court has set aside for your case, witnesses, evidence, and final resolution.
The court may continue a case on its own motion or with the consent of the other side. An agreed motion presented early, with a proposed new date, gives the judge a clearer path than a contested request made at the last minute. For that reason, your attorney will usually contact opposing counsel before filing.
Reasons Illinois Family Judges Accept and Reasons They Reject
Medical Emergency or Serious Illness
A hospitalization, serious accident, or sudden incapacity can support a request to continue a trial date. This may involve a party, a necessary witness, or an attorney whose participation is required.
Illinois courts require more than a vague statement that someone is sick. A party’s illness should be verified by competent medical evidence that explains the nature of the illness and why the person cannot participate in the proceeding. A short note saying only that someone is unwell may not be enough.
Timing still matters. Notify your attorney and the court as soon as the situation allows. Delay between learning of the emergency and raising it weakens the request.
A Witness or Evaluator You Cannot Produce
Illinois Supreme Court Rule 231 governs motions for continuance. If you need more time because material evidence is missing, the motion must be supported by a sworn affidavit. The affidavit must show four things:
- That you used due diligence to obtain the evidence.
- What facts the evidence contains.
- Where an absent witness lives, or that you used diligence to find out.
- That more time will produce the evidence.
The judge can still deny the motion. Under Rule 231(b), the court may deny a continuance if the missing evidence would not be material. The court may also deny it if the other side admits what the absent witness would say.
Evidence you could have pursued earlier in the case is not a strong basis for moving the trial date. A trial date is usually set after the case has had time for discovery, so the court will consider how much time was already available.
A New Attorney Close to Trial
Illinois judges often give new counsel a reasonable period of time to review the case and prepare. However, they do not allow every last minute change of lawyers to reset the trial calendar.
A Chicago family court may even decline to let an attorney withdraw when the case is set for trial. Whether it is too late to switch divorce attorneys turns on timing, the reason for the change, and whether the trial date can remain in place.
If you have already retained new counsel and the trial date does not need to move, the court may allow the substitution. If changing attorneys during divorce in Illinois is part of the issue, it is important review that procedure. Do not assume that retaining a new lawyer will also mean the judge will allow you to delay trial.
Active Military Service
Military service is relevant to this issue because Illinois Supreme Court Rule 231 specifically addresses it as a ground for a continuance. The rule applies when a party or necessary witness is serving in time of war or insurrection and that service materially impairs the person’s ability to prosecute or defend the case.
The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act may also require a stay of proceedings. The request must include a written statement explaining how military duty affects the servicemember’s ability to appear, along with a letter from the commanding officer.
If military service may affect your court date, it is important to discuss it with your divorce attorney as early as possible.
Requests Illinois Family Judges Deny
A judge is less likely to continue a trial when the request appears to be just for delay rather than a true conflict. Common problems include:
- You are not ready and have no clear explanation for why.
- You booked a vacation after the trial date was set.
- You want more time to negotiate, and the other side does not agree.
- You are seeking delay for its own sake.
The court examines these requests closely when postponement benefits one party, such as by extending temporary support or exclusive possession of the home. If the motion is denied, the case proceeds on the original trial date.
When Is It Too Late to Postpone an Illinois Trial Date
Timing changes how the court views the request. Before the case is reached for trial, the judge considers the motion under ordinary discretion.
Once the case has been reached for trial, the court will not hear a motion to continue until the moving party first explains the delay in bringing it. You should raise the issue with your attorney the day you learn about a conflict with the trial date.
How to Ask an Illinois Family Court to Move Your Trial Date
A request to move a trial date should be made by filing a written motion. The motion is served on the other side with notice and presented to the judge before the date at issue.
The motion should:
- State the specific reason for the request.
- Attach the affidavit when the request is based on missing evidence.
- Propose a new date rather than asking for an open-ended delay.
Local practice controls how the motion reaches the judge. Cook, DuPage, Lake, and Will Counties each have their own requirements, and individual judges may also maintain standing orders for their courtrooms.
Once a conflict appears, the request usually moves through four steps:
- You contact your attorney the same day you learn of the conflict.
- Your attorney contacts opposing counsel to see whether the motion can be agreed.
- Your attorney files a written motion, serves it with notice, and proposes a new date.
- The judge hears the motion before the trial date.
What a Postponement Costs You in an Illinois Divorce
A continuance moves the trial date. It does not pause the temporary orders already in place.
While a divorce is pending, an Illinois court can enter temporary orders for child support, spousal maintenance, parenting time, and sometimes exclusive possession of the marital home. Those orders remain in effect unless the court changes them, enters a final judgment, or dismisses the case.
That matters because temporary orders can control daily life during the case. If the trial date moves, the same support amount, parenting schedule, or living arrangement may continue until the new trial date or until the court enters a different order. The longer the trial is delayed, the longer those temporary arrangements may remain in place.
A continuance can also carry financial consequences. Under Rule 231(g), the court may grant a continuance upon payment of costs. If one party appeared ready for trial and the other party requested the continuance, the court may require the requesting party to pay certain costs. The court can enforce that payment through contempt proceedings.
The trial date is often what moves a case toward final resolution, and many cases settle as trial approaches. Moving the trial date can also move the pressure point that brings the case to a conclusion. Trial is the last stage of the Illinois divorce litigation process.
When to Raise a Trial Date Conflict in an Illinois Family Case
Raise the conflict as soon as it becomes known. A motion filed before the case is ready for trial gives the court more room to evaluate the request. If a motion is filed after the case is ready to proceed for trial, you will have to answer the harder question of why that request was not presented sooner.
If the trial date remains in place, you should review the Anderson Boback & Marshall article on what to expect when your divorce is set for trial, which discusses what happens on the day of trial.
If a trial date is approaching in your divorce or family law matter, speak with the Chicago divorce attorneys at Anderson Boback & Marshall before the date passes. Our attorneys can review the reason for the conflict, determine whether a continuance is available, and help you prepare the motion if the date can be moved.
Frequently Asked Questions About Continuances in Illinois Family Court
What happens if I miss my court date in an Illinois divorce case?
The judge may enter a default order in favor of the other side, dismiss your case, or issue a body attachment. A body attachment is a court order authorizing the sheriff to bring you to court. If your case is dismissed, temporary orders entered while the case was pending may terminate as well. Contact your attorney before the court date so you can file a proper and timely motion.
Do both sides have to agree to a continuance in Illinois?
No. Agreement is not required. A judge can grant a contested continuance for sufficient cause. A judge can also continue a case on the court’s own motion or with the consent of the other party. When both sides agree and sign the motion, the court has a cleaner path to enter a new date.
Is a vacation a good enough reason for a continuance in Illinois?
If you booked a trip after the trial date was set, it is unlikely the judge will allow you to move the trial date. However, you have a stronger case for resetting trial if you booked a trip before the trial date was set, especially if the conflict is raised promptly, is documented, and is presented as an agreed motion.
How many continuances will an Illinois judge allow?
Illinois does not set a fixed number. The court reviews the reason for the request, when it was made, and the history of the case. Repeated requests receive closer scrutiny, particularly when delay benefits one side financially or keeps temporary arrangements in place.
Can I get a continuance because I just hired a new lawyer in Illinois?
It depends on timing and necessity. A judge distinguishes a change of attorneys forced by circumstances from an unreasonable change made right before trial. The court will consider how close the case is to trial and whether the new attorney can be ready without moving the date.
