A. On the first court date after all the Defendants have been served with service of process, the Court will refer eligible cases to the program. The Court will then set the matter for status of mediation at least thirty days later. B. Once referred to the program, the Plaintiff's attorney shall email to the mediation program coordinator within five days the court order referring the case to mediation that contains the Plaintiff's and the Defendant's contact information. Incases where both the Plaintiff and Defendant are self-represented litigants, both the Plaintiff and Defendant shall email or mail the program coordinator, within five days of being referred to mediation, their respective contact information. C. The mediator will then contact the parties to schedule a mutually agreeable day and time to conduct the mediation. Each party shall respond within 3-5 business days to the mediator's request to set a mediation date. The parties shall make their best efforts to be available to conduct the mediation as soon as possible after the Order of Referral. D. At the conclusion of the mediation, the mediator shall draft a report indicating the parties' agreement, that the parties were unable to reach an agreement, or that one or the other parties failed to participate in the mediation. E. The mediator shall provide each party with a copy of the mediator's report and shall e-file the same with the clerk of the court. F. All mediation agreements are binding. If the parties enter into an overriding or additional agreement after the mediation it shall be in writing, signed by both parties and is subject to Judges' approval.Ill. R. Cir. Ct. Lake Cnty. 7-4.05
Adopted effective 1/9/2024.