Skokie Courthouse

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.