Service of Process
Good news in the litigation world doesn't come often, but Illinois lawmakers delivered some for Cook County litigators last month with HB 4351. The new law, effective January 1, 2025, revises the service of process requirements in the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-201). The old law required process to be served by the sheriff in counties with a population over 2,000,000 (which, in Illinois, is only Cook), unless the court "upon motion and in its discretion" appointed a private process server to execute service.
HB 4351, approved by Gov. Pritzker on July 19, 2024, deleted that requirement. Litigants in Cook County may now hire a private process server without special appointment by the court, just as in the other 101 counties of the state.
This is good news our for clients, who no longer have to wait for the Sheriff's Department to attempt service and report before following the Court's procedure to appoint a server, who must then, of course, makes their own attempts at service.
It's good news for paralegals (and lawyers), who can avoid the time and expense of motion practice to have a process server appointed, and also gain the flexibility and improved communication that comes with choosing their own preferred vendor.
Of course, it's good news for process servers, who should see increased volume and revenue, though they are now required remit $5 of every service fee in any county of 3 million (again, only Cook).
Arguably, it's even good news for the sheriff's department, who may now be able to reassign deputies from civil process duties to other, more critical, posts.
Most of us in civil litigation have a preferred private process server vendor we like to use. The best make it easy to transmit the documents and keep the lines of communication open as the attempts are made. The Cook County Sheriff's Civil Service Unit has made many improvements in recent years, notably to its online services, but even after the implementation of the Sheriff's electronic portal for uploading and tracking service, it could be difficult to get current status updates. Also, the Sheriff's upload portal limits file size to 10 megabytes, which is less than the 25 permitted by Illinois state courts' e-filing system. Oversize pleadings still have to be delivered in hard copy to the Sheriff's department on the seventh floor of the Daley Center for service, which requires more time and more expense.
Of course, the Sheriff may still be the most cost-effective option for many serves, such as when serving an entity that uses a professional registered agent corporation (such as Illinois Paralegal Association sponsor Alliance Corporate Solutions/Universal Registered Agents), or when serving an individual with a predictable schedule at a known location. In those instances, where the Sheriff's attempt is likely to be successful, the flat $60 service fee is very appealing.
But, for any paralegal who has checked and rechecked the Sheriff's website for an update to give an impatient attorney, or who has had a judge question the necessity of appointing a process server, or has known exactly how to have a slippery defendant served but been unable to direct a deputy to them, HB 4351 is great news for 2025.