Chicago Appleseed is committed to accessible justice for all. To help achieve this, we have created this hub of information for activists, legislators, researchers, journalists, and other community members as they navigate the opaque court systems of Cook County and Illinois.
Our courts are complex and, for many non-lawyers, can be complicated and intimidating – especially for litigants without access to an attorney. With this collaborative effort, our goal is to support equitable community empowerment through accessibility by providing a variety of resources that help bring transparency to legal and civil rights issues.

LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY

2023 | SB 1478: EXPRESSED INTEREST FOR KIDS IN DCFS

SB 1478: GUARANTEED EXPRESSED INTEREST REPRESENTATION FOR KIDS IN DCFS PROCEEDINGS
Summary:
A young person’s voice can get lost in child and family welfare process. By providing “expressed interest representation” to young people in DCFS cases, the state can prioritizes their autonomy by allowing them a chance to advocate for what they desire for guardianship. SB 1478 will amend the Foster Children’s Bill of Rights Act to  include the right for every foster child to have a court-appointed attorney to advocate for the youth’s wishes and make recommendations to the court regarding the youth’s care, and sets up parameters for minimum standards for representation in child abuse or neglect cases. It also creates the “Due Process for Youth Oversight Commission” to oversee the implementation of a youth’s statutory right to counsel and ensures that any child over the age of 8 years will be furnished a written “Notice of Rights” in all abuse and neglect proceedings.
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2023 | SB 1830: REDUCING BARRIERS TO RECOVERY

SB 1830: REDUCING BARRIERS TO RECOVERY
Summary:
From 2016 to 2018, 20,000 people in Illinois were convicted of felonies for possessing small amounts of drugs, and 7,500 were imprisoned. Senate Bill 1830 will strengthen communities across Illinois by replacing the failed strategy of punishment and incarceration with a public health approach to reducing the harms associated with drug use. The bill reclassifies the penalty for possession of small amounts of drugs from a felony to a Class A misdemeanor and offers real diversion in the form of behavioral health and access to treatment rather than incarceration.
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2023 | HB 2455: COURT TRANSPARENCY

HB 2455: JUDICIAL FOIA & COURT TRANSPARENCY 
Summary:
Illinois differs from the majority of other states in that it does not require or permit disclosure of data relating to administrative court functions, neither through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests nor judiciary-specific statutes or rules. At least 44 other states’ probation, pretrial programs, and financial information are subject to open records laws. HB 2455 will amend the state’s FOIA statute to provide that, for purposes of the Act, “public body” will include judicial bodies of the state. The bill exempts preliminary drafts, notes, and other records that pertain to the preparation of judicial opinions and orders.
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2023 | HB 3038: DATA COLLECTION FOR CIVIL ASSET FORFEITURE

HB 3038: IMPROVED DATA COLLECTION IN CIVIL ASSET FORFEITURE CASES
Summary:
Civil asset forfeiture (CAF) laws allow the government to permanently take property away from someone on the basis that the property is associated with a crime—regardless of whether the person is convicted or even arrested for any offense. We are missing critical information necessary to assess the impact of civil asset forfeiture laws and protections on all Illinosians; HB 3038 will improve CAF data collection and quality by tracking the life cycle of an entire case, from initial seizure through disposition and disposal of the property.
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2023 | SB 1886: FAIR PROBATION DRUG TESTING

SB 1886: FAIR PROBATION DRUG TESTING
Summary:
Blanket drug testing doesn’t help people who are on probation succeed. Research shows that two-thirds of Illinois probation departments drug test most or all of their participants, which creates barriers to success for people who can’t afford the $8 per test or to take off work to take the test. SB 1886 will eliminate drug testing fees; limit testing for alcohol and cannabis; and ensure that doctors (not courts) make treatment decisions for people on probation. On July 28, 2023, Governor JB Pritzker signed SB 1886 into law.
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2021 | JOE COLEMAN MEDICAL RELEASE ACT

PUBLIC ACT 102-0494: THE JOE COLEMAN MEDICAL RELEASE ACT
Summary:
The Joe Coleman Medical Release Act was signed by the Governor on August 17, 2021, and will became effective on January 1, 2022. Joe Coleman – an 81-year-old decorated veteran died alone in prison while awaiting a decision on executive clemency. Mr. Coleman was service a life sentence for stealing $640 from a gas station. Mr. Coleman and those like him deserve to die in dignity, with their families. In 2019, over 300 imprisoned people in Illinois were permanently housed is infirmary and hospital settings. With the Joe Coleman Medical Release Act, ill and incapacitated people in IDOC would have access to a simple, expedited process for release consideration to Medicaid-approved outside care facility able to meet their needs.

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2021 | PRETRIAL FAIRNESS ACT (PFA) + SAFE-T ACT

IL PUBLIC ACT 101-0652:  PRETRIAL FAIRNESS ACT (WITHIN THE SAFE-T ACT)
Summary:
In February, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed the SAFE-T Act (HB 3653 SFA2) – presented by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus – into law. The SAFE-T (Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity – Today) Act includes the provisions of the Pretrial Fairness Act (PFA), which ends money bond, ensures faster release, requires courts to provide common sense pretrial services, increases government transparency, and reforms the warrant system in Illinois. The bill alleviates the financial burden that money bonds put on innocent families and ensures lack wealth is never the reason people stay in jail. The Pretrial Fairness Act ensures poverty is no longer a driver of incarceration. Most provisions in the SAFE-T Act go into effect in 2022, with the exception of the abolition of money bond, which will take effect on September 18, 2023.
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Issue-Specific Information:
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PRETRIAL FAIRNESS ACT FROM THE COALITION TO END MONEY BOND. FOR MORE ON THE HISTORY OF BOND REFORM IN COOK COUNTY, CLICK HERE.

2020 | LICENSE TO WORK ACT

IL PUBLIC ACT 101-0623: LICENSE TO WORK ACT

Summary:
In 2020, the Illinois General Assembly passed the License to Work Act, which ended drivers’ license suspensions for failure to pay parking tickets, impacting 75,000 Illinois driving records. The Act – which is the result of bipartisan support and years of advocacy from the Transit Table Coalition and other economic justice groups – ends the draconian practice of suspending driver’s licenses for numerous issues such as the inability to pay fines and fees from parking and vehicle compliance tickets. Nearly 75,000 drivers will have suspensions cleared from their driving records thanks to the Act. In February of 2021, Governor Pritzker signed the Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity – Today (SAFE-T) Act, which includes significant expansions of the reforms in the License to Work Act. Illinois will no longer suspend driver’s licenses for unpaid fines and fees from traffic violations and automated camera tickets; people whose driver’s licenses have been suspended, canceled, or prohibited due to failure to pay any fine or penalty from these violations can have them restored and renewed. The legislation prevents future license holds/suspensions for these violations and unpaid abandoned vehicle fines or fees.
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2019 | CRIMINAL AND TRAFFIC ASSESSMENT ACT (CTAA)

IL PUBLIC ACT 100-987: CRIMINAL AND TRAFFIC ASSESSMENT ACT

Summary:

The CTAA repealed a number of excessive fees that existed in Illinois and implemented a pilot fee waiver program for people with income-levels within 400% of the federal poverty guidelines. The legislation was to sunset in 2021, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, buut Chicago Appleseed, the Chicago Council of Lawyers, and our allies are advocating for an extension of the sunset date and for the Illinois Supreme Court to reconvene its Task Force on Court Costs Fines and Fees.

    • More on that advocacy on our blog.
    • For a one-page information sheet to share with legislators, click here. 
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EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

CHICAGO POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY

On February 22, 2021 Governor Pritzker signed the Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity – Today (SAFE-T) Act, previously known as HB 3653, which includes many systemic reforms to policing. More on our blog.

 

REFORM EFFORTS OF CHICAGO POLICE
POLICE PERJURY
RIGHT TO ACCESSIBLE COMMUNICATION

USE OF FORCE AND THE FUTURE OF POLICING

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS

CHILD SUPPORT + FAMILY COURTS

COOK COUNTY DOMESTIC RELATIONS HEARING OFFICERS
“CLEAN SLATE” DEBT RELIEF PROGRAM

ADMINISTRATIVE CHILD SUPPORT PROCESS

“INCOME SHARES” CHILD SUPPORT MODEL
“PASS THROUGH AND DISREGARD” ADVOCACY

CIVICS EDUCATION + VOTING FOR JUDGES

CHICAGO MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS 2023

VOTING FOR JUDGES

For information about judicial elections in Cook County, including the evaluations and endorsements of judges from bar associations and media outlets, visit www.voteforjudges.org.

COURT ACCESS + TRANSPARENCY

IMMIGRATION RIGHTS + LEGAL PROCESSES

“KNOW YOUR RIGHTS”/”CONOZCA SUS DERECHOS”

RECURSOS PARA ASUNTOS LEGALES DE INMIGRACIÓN (ESPAÑOL)

RESOURCES FOR IMMIGRATION LEGAL ISSUES (ENGLISH)

RIGHTS TO COMMUNICATE

RIGHT TO ACCESSIBLE COMMUNICATION

On February 22, 2021 Governor Pritzker signed the Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity – Today (SAFE-T) Act, previously known as HB 3653, which includes many systemic reforms, including strengthened protections for arrested people at police stations. More on our blog.

POLICE STATION REPRESENTATION IN COOK COUNTY

DISCLAIMER: By providing these resources, Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts is in no way offering legal advice or guidance and takes no responsibility for the content published by organizations or entities other than itself.