Chicago Divorce Lawyers & Attorneys

A well-written order should satisfy the following criteria:

1. Is the Order legible? The document should be legible so it can be easily read.  The Order, when hand written should be printed so that it can be easily deciphered. What is the message to the Judge to whom a poorly written and barely legible Order is presented? For openers, one conclusion is that the person
preparing the document was lazy and inconsiderate. That message extends to every other person who is forced to decipher such an Order.

2. Is the Order clear in its meaning without reference to another document? If a person with no familiarity with the case were to read the document, would it be clear on its face as to what occurred before the court without reference to another document? What was the basis for the relief requested? Any special considerations? What were the issues presented for consideration? If the court conducted a hearing on the issues presented, is the Order dispositive of each of the issues presented in the Petition or is it necessary for the reader to look to the Petition to understand what took place at the hearing.

3. Does the Order contain the required statutory language? Does the statute under which the relief is sought require that the trial judge make specific findings on questions of fact and jurisdictional issues? In such cases, the Order must recite such specific facts to give validity to the order and provide a basis for the Court to make a finding that is has jurisdiction of the parties and the subject matter of the proceedings. Two examples: 1) For the case where the issue is the custody of a child; and, 2) A case involving bad faith pleadings under Rule 137.
In each of these cases the Order or Judgment must recite that the trial court made  specific findings  of fact  required  by the  statute  and  the  order or pronouncements must logically flow from those findings. The failure of the order to contain this language may render the Order ineffective.

4. Is the language of the Order sufficiently clear and specific to place a party on notice as to the action required, and as such, to justify enforcement by rule of court to show cause for non-compliance?   If the Order fails to be specific in its terms as it relates to the obligations of a person to perform, the enforcement power of the court will be unavailable. To enforce an Order of Court by Rule to Show Cause, the movant must recite the language of the Order which the alleged contemnor violated.   If the language of the Order is unclear as to what was expected, then it would be inappropriate for the Court to issue a Rule.

5. Does the Order recite all that took place before the court [the parties present; the basis for the hearing before the court; the findings of fact by the court]? In many cases where a controversy arises over an issue presented to a court before whom there is no official court reporter or authorized recording device, the only record of the proceedings are the documents which have been filed with the Clerk of Court and the Orders entered by the Court. Beyond that there is only the memory of the parties. The significance of this scenario is that without an official record the Order is becomes the record. Where the Order is hastily drawn and the drafter fails to recite relevant facts which memorialize the events of court, the result is a poorly drafted order. The potential then exists for a later dispute as to its interpretation. When that occurs, neither the parties nor respective counsel will recall events with a similar mind-set. Inevitably the recall is from each parties own particular sense of reality which suits their self-interest. It is also possible that at the time the dispute arises that the players [attorney's, parties, judge, etc.] are other than those that participated in the original proceeding. Finally, as there is the passage of time there is dimming of recollection.