Rule 10-101 Standardized Court Forms
Article X: Access to Justice Commission
Rule Text
(a) The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice shall establish a process to develop and approve standardized, legally sufficient forms for areas of law and practice where the Commission determines that there is a high volume of self-represented litigants or that standardized court forms will enhance access to justice or court efficiency.
(b) The Commission shall establish a process for publication, review and approval of any proposed standardized court form in accordance with the Supreme Court’s administrative order, M.R. 25401, regarding standardized court forms.
(c) Standardized court forms may be used by any litigant or lawyer whenever they are applicable. All courts must accept standardized court forms.
(d) After a standardized court form is published, no court may (1) maintain, create, or disseminate alternate court forms that seek the same legal remedy; (2) require, promote, or encourage the use of any other court form that seeks the same legal remedy; (3) require that a standardized court form be used in a manner that is contrary to its intended purpose of enhancing access to justice; or (4) require that litigants or lawyers use a modified standardized court form, except as permitted in paragraph (e).
(e) A court may supplement a standardized court order as necessary or appropriate.
(f) A litigant or lawyer may add additional material to a standardized court form as long as the form is not altered.
(g) All courts must promote and encourage the use of standardized court forms in English and promote the published instructional material and the translated versions of the standardized court forms for assistance, by making them available to the public—in both electronic and paper formats as appropriate—by clerks, law libraries, self-help centers, judicial websites, and through other reasonable methods.
(h) Courts and clerk offices and their websites must use the promotional materials designed and distributed by the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice to promote standardized court forms to litigants or lawyers.
Adopted Nov. 28, 2012, eff. immediately; amended Mar. 26, 2021, eff. Sept. 1, 2021.