CBA Record May-June 2020

before a judge. It also allows for more written explanation of whether a matter is emergent, which will allow judges to be able to draft more detailed orders pertain- ing to their reasoning and ultimately give the division greater uniformity in manage- ment of such issues.

Until recently, the work of an appellate court justice was highly paper-oriented. Cumbersome circuit court records with tens of thousands of pages were wheeled into our chambers on industrial carts. White, blue, and yellow-covered briefs were stacked on desks, tables, and even chairs everywhere. Once each week, a deputy clerk would deliver about 70 stapled multi-page motions for review, each paper- clipped to a proposed order. Handling so much paper made working remotely more of a chore than a convenience. That changed when the Illinois courts transitioned to electronic filing. Now, a justice or law clerk can access briefs, elec- tronic records, and motions from virtually anywhere using the court’s secure web portal. Only a few exceptions remain— some criminal briefs are still filed on paper, and self-represented litigants who obtain an electronic filing waiver will appear per- sonally at our court clerk’s counter to file handwritten motions and briefs. The Bilandic Building in downtown Chicago is probably the largest single-site appellate court in the country. The 24 justices of the First District have their only chambers in the building, and each justice has three staff members, mostly law clerks, who work alongside them. Because make for even more solo offices, which will result in changes pertaining to tech- nology, need for office space, and future staffing needs, as those attorneys will need novel ways to manage their offices without secretaries, bookkeepers, clerks, paralegals, and associates. It is also possible that some practitioners, being in need of things that a larger office supported, such as insurance for their family, may leave the practice of family law all together. Running a Case A new process for managing emergencies now exists, under the general order of the Presiding Judge of the Domestic Rela- tions (Judge Grace Dickler). This process has a structure for determining whether

everyone in our court is clustered together on four floors of the same building, docu- ments are often hand-delivered to adjacent chambers. Amailroom attendant also stops by each chambers twice a day to pick up and deliver inter-office routings. Justices resolve differences with colleagues just by walking down the hall or up a floor, with record or briefs in hand, to persuade the author to revise a problematic sentence or paragraph. Similarly, administrative mat- ters are discussed in face-to-face meetings around a conference table. But this arrange- ment is not universal among American courts of review. In some states, appellate justices have no chambers and work from home, except when they travel to the courthouse for oral arguments. Although court personnel are exempt from the Governor’s stay-at-home order, working remotely during the pandemic is essential for our own safety and that of others. The court has adapted well to this new temporary reality. Many justices are now circulating material and exchang- ing comments and corrections by email. Although a few employees are physically in the court clerk’s office to handle people walk-in paper filings, many filings are processed remotely through a secure web portal. an issue is an emergency before any right to a hearing occurs. This analysis was fre- quently done at the bench, ad hoc, on the date of presentment. Now, objections to the emergent basis of the motion occur in writing, changing the tenor and cadence of emergency cases. There is also a statement of greater enforcement against a litigant or counsel for seeking to adjudicate non-emergencies on an emergent basis. Although this was technically available before, it was rarely enforced. With the new limits on court resources, I expect it will be used more uniformly and more often, which will discourage spurious emergency claims and also encourage more lawyers to attempt to resolve emergencies before bringing them

Clare McMahon is a member of the CBA Editorial Board and practices as a domestic relations attorney. She is a child’s representa- tive and solo practi- tioner.

Working Remotely as an Appellate Justice BY JUSTICE MATHIAS W. DELORT

Many states have already had success in conducting oral arguments remotely, either through a video conferencing application or conference call system. Regardless of the quality of the electronic system, the pace and style of argument changes. There can be a time delay between when a participant says something and when another hears it. This delay affects the give-and-take of a judge interrupting an attorney with challenging questions. Some courts have altered their arguments to allow counsel a block of time to make an uninterrupted argument, followed by a period during which each justice asks questions, in seniority order. The Second District has begun remote arguments.Those arguments are recorded and posted on the court’s web- site as usual. If social distancing guidelines stay in place for some time, other districts may follow suit. Even in the most trying times, the jus- tice system must function effectively and adjudicate disputes fairly and according to the law. The appellate court and many dedicated staff members are doing their part daily to make sure that happens.

Justice Mathias W. Delort serves on the Illinois Appellate Court’s First District, 6th Division.

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