Illinois Supreme Court-Approved Instructions, How to File and Present an Eviction Case

documents You must ask for a court date that gives the sheriff or
will be sent to you. You should use an email account that special process server enough time to serve the
you do not share with anyone else and that you check Defendant at least 3 days before the court date (7 days
every day. If you do not check your email every day, you in Cook County).
may miss important information, notice of court dates, or o Outside Cook County:
documents from other parties.
• Before filing your case, contact your local Circuit
Where can I find the forms I need? Clerk’s office to ask about their process for filing
You can find the forms at ilcourts.info/forms. the Eviction Complaint and Summons. To find
the Circuit Clerk’s phone number, visit
Who should I name as Plaintiff in the Eviction illinoiscourts.gov/courts/circuit-court/circuit-court-
Complaint? clerks/.
• Once you have your court date, fill in that
o You must be the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff files the
information on the Eviction Summons.
lawsuit and is usually the landlord or owner of the
o In Cook County:
property. If a corporation or LLC owns the property,
it must hire a lawyer. Property managers cannot file • If you are e-filing in Cook County, select your
on behalf of the owner. court date in the “return date” field. The Circuit
Clerk will print the court date, time and
Who should I name as Defendants in the Eviction courtroom number on the Eviction Complaint
Complaint when multiple people live on the and Eviction Summons when you e-file.
property? • If you are filing in person because you have a
Certification for Exemption from E-filing, ask the
o You should name every adult who lives in the Circuit Clerk for a court date when you file your
property. Eviction Summons, and fill it in.
o You should include “All Unknown