When clients request a motion to be filed on their behalf, they often expect their motion to be heard by the Court immediately. However, in Cook County, the process takes a little time. First, the party filing the motion must schedule the motion to be presented to the Court. If you already have a court date coming up, you may schedule your motion for that date provided that you have enough time to give the other party proper notice of your motion as stated below. However, if you do not already have a court date, you must schedule your motion with the clerk. Typically, the clerk will schedule your motion for at least one week later, depending on the Court’s schedule.
Second, the party filing the motion must give the other party proper notice of the presentment date. The Cook County local rules provide that, if the party is going to give the other party notice via US mail, you must mail the notice to the other party five court days before the motion date. Therefore, if your motion is scheduled for a Friday, you must mail your notice to the other party by the previous Friday. If you are going to personal serve the other party with notice, by either hand delivering, e-mailing, or faxing the notice to the other party, then you must send the notice to the other party two court days before the motion date. Therefore, if your motion is scheduled for a Friday, you must serve the other party by Wednesday.
Once you have your motion scheduled, many clients think that the Court will decide the issue on that date. However, this date is not the hearing date, but rather, the date the motion is initially presented to the Court. On this date, you or your attorney will present the issue to the Court and ask the Court for appropriate relief. The Court will usually provide the opposing party with twenty-one to twenty-eight days to the respond to the motion. Then, the parties will schedule a second court date for a hearing on the motion. At the second court date, the Court will decide the issue. If you are having an issue and feel you need a motion filed on your behalf, please feel free to set up a consultation with our office.
