Northern District of Illinois
Local rules, motion practice, and judge procedures for N.D. Ill. practitioners.
New to this court? Start here.
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Presentment court — no standard briefing schedule. Motions are presented at a weekly motion call. File by 4:30 PM two business days before presentment. The judge typically sets a briefing schedule from the bench.
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Meet and confer required for discovery motions. The court will refuse to hear any motion under FRCP 26–37 without proof of in-person or phone conferral (LR 37.2). The certification must state the date, time, and place of the conference.
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Significant judge-to-judge variation. NDIL judges routinely set their own briefing deadlines and local preferences in standing orders. Read your judge's standing orders before you file anything.
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Recent rule changes. Digital Media Exhibits must now be submitted via the court portal (eff. Sept 2025). Highly Sensitive Material (HSM) procedures requiring offline storage took effect May 2025.
Orientation
Operating Model
## Operating Model — Presentment Court IL-ND is a presentment court. The movant files the motion via CM/ECF AND serves...
Judge-Specific Procedures
## §9. Judge-Specific Procedures ### Where to Find Standing Orders The court website provides each judge's individual...
Recent Changes
## §10. Recent Changes | Effective Date | Rule | Change | Impact | |----------------|------|--------|--------| | March...
Formatting
Filing & Service
Motion Practice
Briefing Schedule
## §4. Briefing Schedule ### Standard Motions The local rules do not set district-wide response or reply deadlines. LR...
Motion Practice
## §3. Motion Practice ### Operating Model — Presentment **Layer 1 — Source-backed rules:** NDIL uses a...
Meet-and-Confer Requirements
## §5. Meet-and-Confer Requirements ### Discovery Motions — Mandatory Conferral The court will **refuse to hear** any...