11.01 Case Management Conferences and Subsequent Court Dates 11.02 Discovery 11.03 Pretrial Settlement Conferences 11.04 Pre-Trial Conferences 11.05 Reserved 11.06 Filing of Briefs or Memorandums of Law 11.01 CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCES AND SUBSEQUENT COURT DATES A. Pursuant to the exemption provision of Supreme Court Rule 218, the case management conference requirements of such rule shall not apply to any case pending in court-annexed mandatory arbitration pursuant to Supreme Court Rules 86 et. seq., actions for forcible entry and detainer, actions in small claims, actions in probate, adoptions, actions in paternity, domestic relations post decree matters. B. The following case management procedures shall apply for case types L (Law over $50,000), MR (Miscellaneous Remedies), CH (Injunction), CH (Foreclosure), ED (Eminent Domain), LM (Detinue), LM (Replevin), LM (Foreign Judgment), and MC (Municipal Corporation) and TX (Tax): 1. For all case types other than TX (Tax) and CH (Foreclosure), the clerk shall schedule a Supreme Court Rule 218 case management conference on the assigned judge’s court docket within ninety (90) days after the filing of the complaint. For TX (Tax) cases, the clerk shall schedule a Supreme Court Rule 218 case management conference on the assigned judge’s court docket within one year after the filing of the complaint; for CH (Foreclosure) cases, the clerk shall schedule a Supreme Court Rule 218 case management conference on the assigned judge’s court docket on a date within one hundred eighty (180) days after the filing of the complaint; 2. At the time of filing the initial complaint, the clerk shall indicate on all complaints and summons the date and time and location for an initial case management conference; 3. A date for a next case management hearing shall be scheduled each time a matter is before the Court. The next court date shall be scheduled within one hundred twenty (120) days except for good cause shown; 4.Case management issues may be discussed at each case management hearing and case management orders pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 218 may be entered by the Court on its own motion or on the motion of any party; and 5. Court-annexed mediation or court-assisted settlement conferences are encouraged and may be requested upon the motion of any party. C. Case management conferences in contested Domestic Relations Cases shall be governed by Local Rule14.005. D. In all civil matters except for foreclosures, a next hearing date shall be scheduled each time a matter is before the Court. Except for good cause shown, next hearing dates shall be scheduled within one hundred and twenty (120) days, with the exception of (P) Probate, (SC) Small Claims and CH (Foreclosure) matters in which next hearing dates shall be scheduled at the presiding judge's discretion. (Revised 10/17/2017) Back to the Top 11.02 DISCOVERY A. Days for Taking Depositions Unless otherwise agreed by the parties or ordered by the court, depositions shall not be taken on Saturdays, Sundays, or court holidays. (See General Order 1.05) B. Written Interrogatories The party serving written interrogatories shall provide a copyto each party to answer the same. The answering party may attach an addendum to the copies if the space provided is found to be insufficient. C. Filing of Documents 1. Restrictive Filing No discovery may be filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court except upon leave of court. 2. Proof of Serving and Answering Discovery Documents Discovery pleadings including responsive discovery documents may be served personally or by U.S. Mail. Parties filing discovery pleadings including responsive discovery documents shall file a notice of filing with the clerk of the court with proof of service. The filing of the notice of filing shall be prima facie evidence that the same were served. The notice of filing shall contain the case title and number, date mailed or personally served, the sending and receiving parties, proof of service and shall identify the particular discovery pleading or responsive discovery document served or answered. (Adopted 10/1991; Revised 8/9/2000; Revised 8/17, 2007; Revised 6/14/2011) Back to the Top 11.03 PRETRIAL SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES At any pretrial settlement conference scheduled by the court, the attendance of parties with settlement authority is required unless specifically excused by the Court. “Settlement authority” means the ability to meaningfully negotiate toward a settlement agreement on behalf of a party and, if successful, to bind that party to an enforceable settlement agreement. Settlement conferences before the judge presiding over the case are undertaken pursuant to the provisions of Supreme Court Rule 63A(5)(c). Case summaries and memoranda submitted to the judge prior to the settlement conference are to be shared with all parties of record unless all parties agree in writing that such material may be submitted to the judge confidentially. Unless the Court orders that the participant must attend the settlement conference in person, attendance may be via telephone. A party attending via telephone must be reachable by telephone for the duration of the settlement conference. Failure of a party or their counsel to comply with this rule may result incourt-imposed sanction, including but not limited to an award of attorney fees to the other party or parties. The parties understand that, by taking part in a judicial settlement conference, they may learn the judge’s thoughts and impressions about the case. Consequently, any party who agrees to participate in a judicial settlement conference expressly waives the right to take a substitution of the judge in question as a matter of right pursuant to 735 ILCS 5/2-1001(a)(2). This does not affect a party’s right to seek a substitution of judge for cause. (Amended 5/19/2016) Back to the Top 11.04 PRE-TRIAL CONFERENCES Pre-trial Conferences may be held in any action upon the motion of any party or upon the order of the judge. See Appendix I. A. At the Final Pre-trial Conference in a jury case, trial counsel must appear and are responsible for informing thier clients, trial witnesses, and other counsel for thier respective clients of the Court's rulings. Additionally, the parties are to present the following unless excused by the court: 1. Motions in Limine with citations to authorities (to be filed 14 days prior to the pretrial conference); 2. Responses to Motions in Limine with citations to authorities (to be filed 7 days prior to the pretrial conference); 3. Proposed jury instructions; 4. A short Statement of the Case sufficient to give prospective jurors a basic understanding of the type of case involved; 5. A collaborative witness list (listing all persons who may testify for any party); and 6. A numbered list of each party’s proposed exhibits. B. Unless excused by the Court, at any Pre-trial conference also designated by the court to be a settlement conference, the parties or their representatives with settlement authority are to be present in person or available by telephone, as the court directs. (Revised 6/17/2014) Back to the Top 11.05 RESERVED(see Local Rule 12.03) Back to the Top 11.06 FILING OF BRIEFS OR MEMORANDUMS OF LAW 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. No briefs or memoranda of law may be filed with the Clerk of the Boone County Circuit Court except upon leave of court. Briefs shall be limited to fifteen (15) pages, double-spaced unless a higher page limit is approved by the Court. All briefs should be in ten (10) point font or larger and have no less than one (1) inch margins. Factual references in the brief shall be supported by specific references to the record. On administrative appeals, references shall be made to the page number of the administrative record. Courtesy copies of briefs should be provided to the judge in the case via the trial court administration office. (Revised 03/15/2017) Back to the Top
