To file the Motion, you will need to fill out the following forms: 

• Motion: This form explains what you want the court to do and why the court should do it.
• Order: This is the form the judge will fill out when a decision is made.

You can print out a copy of the Motion and Order and fill them out by hand. Or, because you eventually need to e-file these forms, you may choose to download the forms and complete them via fillable PDF on your computer.

Three copies of each form are required. Each copy must be filled in completely. Once each copy of each form is filled in completely, you must file-stamp each form.

To fill out the forms, you will need to provide information about:

• The case name and number.
• The action you want the appellate court to take.
• The reasons why the appellate court should take that action.
• The parties or people you sent the motion to and how you sent it. See the next step for more information.

The forms have instructions about how exactly to fill them out. Learn more about properly completing and filing a Motion in the Illinois Appellate Court.

You must send one copy of the Motion and Order to each party in the case. If the other party has an attorney, you must send one copy of each form to the attorney's office instead. In legal terms, when you send your Motion and Order to the other parties, this is called "service."

You can choose how to send the document to the other parties. Your options are:

• Personal hand delivery;
• Regular, first-class mail;
• Third-party commercial carrier (like FedEx or UPS);
• Email, if the other party has agreed to get documents from you by email; or
• E-filing service provider (either through the court or a third-party).

Make sure you fill out the Proof of Service section of the Motion to match how you actually sent the documents.

The Motion form allows you to provide proof of service for 3 parties. If there are more than 3 other parties besides yourself in the case, then you will need to fill out an Additional Proof of Service form for each additional party.

Once your forms are completed, you must file them with the court. Generally, you  must e-file your forms.

Learn more about e-filing your forms. Be sure to remember that you are filing appellate court forms, not circuit court forms.

If you do not have easy access to a computer or the internet, you can get help e-filing your form by bringing your Motion to a local appellate court clerk's office. You may bring the Motion in hard copy or on a flash drive. The appellate court clerks' offices have public terminals where you can scan and e-file your motion.

You may not need to e-file your forms if one of the following statements is true:

• You have a sensitive case, like a petition for an order of protection or a civil no contact/stalking order;
• You have trouble reading, writing, or speaking in English; or
• You do not have Internet or a computer at home and getting to a library or other place with access to the public internet is difficult.

If one of these circumstances applies to you, you may ask the court to let you file paper forms instead of e-filing. You can do that by filing the appellate version of the Certification for Exemption from E-filing form. Use our Easy Form program to make the e-filing exemption or download a blank form.

The court will review your Motion and decide whether to grant or deny it. This could take several weeks. In some cases, instead of granting or denying it, the judge may order a hearing on your Motion. If the judge orders a hearing, you may be expected to argue the basis of your Motion against the other person in court before the judge.

The judge will fill out the Order when a decision has been made. The appellate clerk will mail you a copy of the completed Order.