Skokie Courthouse
The District 5 Skokie courthouse is located at 5600 Old Orchard Road in Skokie, just around the corner from the Westfield Old Orchard Shopping Center. Traffic Offenses and criminal cases committed in the cities near Skokie are heard at the Skokie Courthouse and include many types of cases such as felonies, traffic offenses, misdemeanors, and various ordinance violations. There is a free parking garage right behind the courthouse but get there early as slots fill up.
SEXNER’S PRO LEGAL TIP: It’s always a good idea to dress properly for court. But what is considered dressing properly? It doesn’t necessarily mean wearing a suit and tie for a man or a dress for a woman. But if you do decide to really dress up, it’s unlikely that you’ll ever hear a judge complain. Dressing properly for court really just means dressing respectfully and showing the judge that you realize that a courthouse is a serious place within which important matters are handled.
Judges realize that people have jobs and that court is usually held during work hours which often intersect with a person’s work day. They don’t expect people to go home and change into a court outfit and then after court, go back home and change into their work clothes. So, they understand that work clothes are not a sign of disrespect. If you are a custodian and your work clothes are overalls, that’s fine. If you work at McDonalds and you have specific work clothing, most judges will understand this as well.
A problem may arise however when you show up in shorts and a T-shirt during the summer, dirty clothing or clothing with holes in it. That’s because this type of clothing is unlikely to be anyone’s work uniform and instead may send a message that you don’t respect what the court stands for.
You can be assured that if a male lawyer appeared in front of the judge without a tie or without a jacket, most judges would also ask the lawyer why they were dressed in this unconventional manner. A few years ago in Lake County as a matter of fact, a woman was actually jailed for having what was considered to be offensive language on her T-shirt. So, the best advice is to dress for success, not jail.
Map to Skokie Courthouse
To see other courthouse locations, visit this page.