Northern District of Illinois Filing Bundling Requirements

29 rules from official source documents

8 of 29 checked against the court's document. Each rule says how far it was checked. A value with a question mark is not in the court's wording on its card.

Whether to bundle related filings together or file them promptly as completed. This page is scoped to Northern District of Illinois; use the court rules overview to switch categories without leaving this court.

Checked against the court's document on Oct 4, 2026CRITICAL

Civil cases

Motions in limine must not be bound with the proposed final Pretrial Order and must be filed separately through CM/ECF by Court-set deadlines.

The actual motions in limine are not to be bound with the proposed final Pretrial Order, but must be electronically filed separately on the CM/ECF system in accordance with the deadlines set by the Court.

Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings

Checked and corrected to match the court's document on Oct 4, 2026CRITICAL

Civil cases

Motions in limine must be filed separately.

Motions in limine. As noted above, motions in limine will be filed separately.

Judge LaShonda A. Hunt

Checked and corrected to match the court's document on Oct 4, 2026WARNING

Civil cases

Parties filing multiple motions in limine should submit the initial motions and supporting exhibits together in one document.

Parties filing multiple motions in limine should submit their initial motions and the supporting exhibits in one document for the Court.

Judge LaShonda A. Hunt

Checked and corrected to match the court's document on Oct 4, 2026WARNING

Civil cases

Initial motions in limine and supporting exhibits should be submitted together in one document.

Parties filing motions in limine should submit their initial motions and the supporting exhibits in one document for the Court.

Judge Sara L. Ellis

Checked and corrected to match the court's document on Oct 4, 2026WARNING

Civil cases

Responses to motions in limine should be submitted together in one document.

Responses to motions in limine should also be submitted in one document.

Judge Sara L. Ellis

Checked and corrected to match the court's document on Oct 4, 2026INFO

Civil cases

When reasonable, parties should consolidate multiple motions into one or a few filings to reduce filing volume.

To the extent reasonable, parties should file multiple motions in one filing (or a few consolidated filings) to reduce the number of filings.

Judge Mary M. Rowland

Checked against the court's document on Oct 4, 2026INFO

Civil cases

Separate motions in limine and responses may be combined in one filing.

Separate motions in limine and responses may be combined in a single filing.

Judge Robert M. Dow Jr.

Checked against the court's document on Oct 4, 2026INFO

Civil cases

The parties are encouraged, when reasonable, to combine multiple motions in one or a few consolidated filings.

To the extent reasonable, file multiple motions in one filing (or a few consolidated filings) to reduce the number of filings.

Magistrate Judge Michael F. Iasparro

The quote is in the court's document. The summary is not checked yet.WARNING?

Civil cases

The motions should not be bound with the final pretrial order.

Summary: Motions in limine must not be bound together with the final pretrial order.

Judge Elaine E. Bucklo

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Civil casesProposed or draft document; may not be in force

At least five business days before the pretrial conference, the parties must submit to chambers two USB storage devices with all of the proposed exhibits. In addition to the storage devices, the parties also must supply two sets of exhibit binders containing copies of objected-to exhibits only. The party that is objecting to an exhibit is responsible for providing the copy of the objected-to exhibit. After the final pretrial conference and rulings on exhibits, no closer than five business days before trial, the parties must submit the final trial exhibits on a USB drive and provide two paper copies of the exhibits, double-sided in three-ring binders.

Summary: Exhibit submission requirements: USB drives and binders for proposed and final exhibits.

Judge John F. Kness

Not confirmed. Read the court's wording below.CRITICAL?

Civil cases

The parties must meet and confer in order to attempt to agree on as many jury instructions and verdict forms as possible and shall submit a single set of instructions and forms to the Court.

Summary: The parties must meet and confer to seek agreement on jury instructions and verdict forms and submit one combined set to the Court.

Judge LaShonda A. Hunt

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Motions in limine must also be filed separately on the docket. Each party must file all of its motions in limine in one consolidated filing (or a few consolidated filings). Unless otherwise ordered, responses are due one week after the motion’s filing, and no replies may be filed without leave of court.

Summary: Motions in limine must be filed in consolidated filings; responses due one week after filing; no replies without leave.

Judge Manish S. Shah

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Criminal cases

Motions in limine and supporting memoranda must be filed separately from the joint pretrial statement as separate docket entries.

Summary: Motions in limine must be filed separately from joint pretrial statement.

Judge Mary M. Rowland

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Criminal cases

No replies will be filed unless ordered by the Court.

Summary: Replies to motions in limine are not permitted unless ordered by the Court.

Judge Mary M. Rowland

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Civil cases

Motions to exclude an expert witness, pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and the principles announced in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993), are not to be filed independently as a separate motion. Rather, absent extraordinary circumstances, requests to exclude and/or limit an expert witness’s testimony shall be made either (1) as part of a Rule 56 motion for summary judgment, if a favorable ruling on the request to exclude would be dispositive of the case or a significant portion of the case, or (2) as a motion in limine which, according to the court’s trial procedures for civil trials, shall be filed with the final pretrial order.

Summary: Expert testimony exclusion motions must be filed as part of Rule 56 summary judgment or motion in limine, not as separate motions.

Judge Philip G. Reinhard

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Criminal cases

Parties filing motions in limine should submit their initial motions and the supporting exhibits in one document for the Court. Responses to motions in limine should also be submitted in one document.

Summary: Motions in limine and responses must be submitted in single documents.

Judge Sara L. Ellis

Machine summary. Not checked yet.CRITICAL?

Civil cases

These motions and responses should not be bound with the Pretrial Order. They should be filed separately on the CM/ECF system.

Summary: Motions in limine and responses must be filed separately on CM/ECF, not bound with Pretrial Order.

Magistrate Judge M. David Weisman

Not confirmed. Read the court's wording below.WARNING?

Civil cases

Responses to motions in limine should also be submitted in one document.

Summary: Responses to motions in limine should be submitted together in one document.

Judge LaShonda A. Hunt

Not confirmed. Read the court's wording below.WARNING?

Civil cases

Motions in limine and responses should not be bound with the Final Pretrial Order.

Summary: Motions in limine and their responses should not be bound with the Final Pretrial Order.

Judge Robert M. Dow Jr.