Founder & Editor at County Court Fees.
I keep the fee figures on County Court Fees accurate. That means opening each county's own Circuit Clerk fee schedule or fee ordinance, reading the amounts off it, recording which document they came from and what date it carries, and doing the same for the Sheriff's civil process fees — which are set separately and vary far more than the court's own filing fees do. Right now that covers 28 counties, 24 of them tied to a source document.
Illinois fee changes cluster around January 1, July 1, and October 1, so re-verification runs on that calendar. Between passes I compare a fingerprint of each source document and only re-read the ones that actually changed.
Every figure on this site links the document it came from, so you never have to take my word for it, and every page shows the date it was last checked. Where a county publishes nothing I can read, the page says so and shows a dash rather than a number — I would rather show you a gap than a guess. Where a county's only published schedule is old enough to be wrong, the page says that too.
I am not a lawyer and I do not practice law. I read published fee documents and report what is in them. That is a deliberately narrow job, and staying inside it is what makes the figures worth trusting.
If a number here does not match what the clerk quoted you, the clerk is right and I am wrong. Email info@countycourtfees.com — a link to a newer schedule or a photo of what you were handed is ideal — and I will correct the page and roll the verification date forward. Corrections do not wait for the next scheduled pass.
The full sourcing and correction process is on the methodology page, and the independence and disclosure rules are in the editorial policy.
This site is a plain-English cost reference, not legal advice. It cannot tell you whether to file a case, how to fill out a form, or what a judge will do. For a specific situation, contact the Clerk of Court, the Illinois Courts self-help center, Illinois Legal Aid Online, or a qualified attorney. If you are facing an eviction, contact legal aid early — the timelines are short.