Check your ticket for a hearing date and time. Some traffic violations automatically receive a hearing date. Others do not. Traffic violators who sign their tickets agree to either pay the fine or dispute their ticket in court. If a hearing date and time do not appear on your ticket, you should ask for a hearing. To do so, follow the instructions on your ticket. If you have questions, call the city of Chicago’s Department of Administrative Hearings at (312) 742-4747.

You can appoint someone to go to the hearing for you if you can’t make it. If they are an attorney, they can present their credentials at the hearing or by mail. If they are not an attorney, you must write a letter authorizing the person to appear on your behalf. The letter will need to be notarized. Having the letter notarized shows that it is valid and not fake. You can find a notary at most currency exchanges or banks.

If your hearing date comes and you need more time to prepare, you can ask the hearing officer for a continuance. Then, a new hearing date will be scheduled. The hearing officer should grant you a continuance if you provide a good reason for why you need one.

Court dates for non-residents

Illinois gives residents of other states the same rights as Illinois residents when given a traffic citation. Non-resident traffic violators can choose to either sign their tickets or not. They can choose this instead of being required to pay a fine right away or attend an immediate hearing.

Non-residents from some states, including Alaska, California, Michigan, Montana, Oregon, and Wisconsin, can refuse to sign their tickets. They would not face arrest. The Illinois Supreme Court will govern bail and court appearance procedures for these people.   

Witness refuses to attend

A witness may refuses to attend the hearing. If this happens, you can tell the hearing officer why the witness is key to the case and ask them to issue a subpoena. A subpoena is a court order demanding that the witness come to the hearing. You will need the witness’s name and address.

Hearing officers rarely issue subpoenas. They tend to issue these only when the hearing officer is convinced that the witness has key information that could change the outcome of the case.