The EOP hearing Lawyer Manual

Process

In court, the judge decides whether or not there is enough evidence. The burden of proof is on the Petitioner, and the standard is preponderance of the evidence. If there is sufficient evidence, the judge issues an EOP and continues the case so the respondent can be served. 750 ILCS 60/212

The hearing will end in one of three ways.  The judge will:

• Grant an emergency order and continue the matter for hearing on a plenary order,
• Deny the emergency order but continue the matter for hearing on a plenary order, or
• Deny the emergency order and dismiss the case.

Note: There is a critical decision for the Petitioner to make here if their EOP request is denied but the judge continues the matter for a hearing on a plenary order. If there is no EOP in place when the Respondent is served, there could be retaliatory violence and anger from the Respondent aimed at the Petitioner. In this situation, your client must decide if they are comfortable with the Respondent being served even though the EOP will not be in effect at the time of service. If your client is uncomfortable with this, they should withdraw their Petition.

Requirements

Judges will look for “good cause” to grant an emergency order. 750 ILCS 60/217. The last communication between the Petitioner and Respondent will be considered. If there was a delay between the communication and the seeking of the order, expect that the victim will have to explain the delay. 

“Good cause” can be understood in the following ways:

• For most remedies, it is necessary that “the harm which that remedy is intended to prevent would be likely to occur if the respondent were given any prior notice, or greater notice than was actually given, of the petitioner's efforts to obtain judicial relief.”  750 ILCS 60/217(3)(i).
• For exclusive possession of residence, there must be immediate danger of abuse. The safety of the petitioner outweighs the potential hardship to the respondent. This remedy will not be denied because the petitioner potentially has or could have alternative shelter. 750 ILCS 60/217(3)(ii).
• For the remedy of possession of personal property, it would have to be likely that there would be an improper disposition of personal property if respondent wasn’t given notice, or the petitioner must have a great and pressing need for the personal property. 750 ILCS 60/217(3)(iii).

Note that the burden of proof is preponderance of the evidence, even if you’re in criminal court.

Result

After the EOP is entered, a plenary hearing date is set and written on the EOP. Summons will be issued for the Respondent. 

Note that because this is an ex parte order, the court will not order the following:

• That the respondent undergo mandatory counseling,
• Temporary allocation of parental responsibilities,
• Temporary child support,
• Restitution for damage to property, or
• Payment of shelter costs.

Securing exclusive possession of the residence

If your client has been granted exclusive possession of the residence and needs to have the respondent removed from their residence, you will need to coordinate with local law enforcement.

The process varies from county to county. In Cook County, the steps are:

1. Make an extra copy of the EOP for your client.

2. Instruct your client to go to the police station closest to the residence, notify the police of the EOP, and ask for the Respondent to be removed from the residence. As individual police departments may have different procedures, your client should be prepared to follow police instructions.

3. Police will accompany the Petitioner to the residence and the police officers will remove the Respondent from the home. 

4. Your client should ask the officer to perform “Short Form Notification” and give her a copy.