How should I search for my case by case number?
If you are not sure of the case number format when searching by case number, try the county specific provided below. If you continue to have issues, contact your local court or clerk’s office.
General case number formats in Illinois: As a general matter for cases filed after 2021, case numbers in Illinois are made up of 3 parts—the year the case was filed (usually 4 digits) followed by 2 letters that represent the category of the case followed by a string of numbers (usually between 6-8 digits) without any dashes, spaces, or other special characters in between.
4 digit year | 2 letter case category | usually 6 digit case number, but may be up to 8 digits[1]
However, some court locations may have their own formats based on local policies and procedures. More information is available for Cook County case number formats.
| Court Locations | Case # Format | Examples |
| Adams, Alexander, Bond, Boone, Brown, Bureau, Calhoun, Carroll, Cass, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, DeWitt, Douglas, Edgar, Edwards, Effingham, Fayette, Ford, Franklin, Fulton, Gallatin, Greene, Grundy, Hamilton, Hancock, Hardin, Henderson, Henry, Iroquois, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jersey, Jo Daviess, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Livingston, Logan, Macon, Macoupin, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Massac, McDonough, Menard, Mercer, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Moultrie, Ogle, Perry, Piatt, Pike, Pope, Pulaski, Putnam, Randolph, Richland, Rock Island, Saline, Schuyler, Scott, Shelby, Stark, Stephenson, Union, Wabash, Warren, Washington, Wayne, White, Whiteside, Williamson, Woodford | 2023XX00000000 | 2023EV000001 or 2023EV1 (extra zeros are not needed) |
| Cook | See article on Cook case number formats. | |
| Champaign, DeKalb, DuPage, Kendall, LaSalle, Madison, Sangamon, Vermilion | 2023XX000000 | 2023DC000004 or 2023DC4 or 23DC4 (leading 20 and extra zeros are not needed) |
| Kankakee | 2023XX0 | 2023DN2, 2023DC12, 2023EV123 |
| Kane | 2023XX000000 | 2023DC000004 or 2023DC4 (extra zeros are not needed) |
| Lake |
For cases initiated before 10/27/2023: 23XX00000000
For cases initiated on 10/27/2023 or later: 2023XX00000000
|
For cases initiated before 10/27/2023: 23AR00009999 or 20P 00009999
For cases initiated on 10/27/2023 or later: 23SC00000999
|
| McHenry | 2023XX000000 | 2023FA000118 or 2023FA118 (extra zeros are not needed) |
| McLean | 2023XX000000 | 2023SC000592, 2023AR000098 |
| Peoria | 2023XX0000000 | 2023DN0000026 or 2023DN26 (extra zeros are not needed) |
| Tazewell | 2023XX000000 | 2023FA000001 or 2023FA1 (extra zeros are not needed) |
| St. Clair | 23XX0000 | 23SC1200, 21F0456, 22DC0005 |
| Will | 2023XX000000 | 2023CH000023, 2020L000143 |
| Winnebago | 2023-XX-0000000 | 2022-DC-0000010 |
| Supreme Court, General Docket Cases | 000000 | 129784, 129785 |
| Supreme Court, Miscellaneous Record Cases | M.R. 000000 | M.R.031841, M.R.031842 |
| 1st-5th Appellate Districts | District number-2 digit year-0000 | 1-23-1106, 2-23-0136, 5-23-0307 |
[1] In some instances, extra zeros may need to be added to the case number so that it is 6 full digits (for example, 2023DC000012 instead of 2023DC12).