Shawn Wood Published in Chicago Lawyer

“Reason Makes a Comeback Under Rules 183 and 216”

Shawn Wood’s article, “Reason Makes a Comeback Under Rules 183 and 216,” was published in the November 2007 issue of Chicago Lawyer.

In his article, Shawn likens the Dr. Seuss classic children’s tale, Horton Hears a Who, to the Illinois First District Court of Appeals that “was able to hear the lawyers and judges in the trenches who have been speaking out about the harsh consequences and suspect tactics being employed under Rule 216.” He notes that, “The First District’s decision in Vision Point... injected a much needed dose of reason into this analysis and adopted a ‘substantial justice’ test for determining whether to allow denials to Requests to Admit beyond the prescribed 28-day period.” Shawn explains that “the Supreme Court disagreed with certain aspects of the appellate court’s reasoning, but clarified several key issues under Rules 183 and 216,” including that Requests to Admit are discovery and Rule 216 does not require a party to file the responses. He notes that, “In one fell swoop, the Illinois Supreme Court acknowledged the outcry among members of the bench and the bar regarding the manner in which these rules were being misconstrued, eliminated the Cool Hand Luke problems… and made clear that circuit courts may consider ‘mistake, inadvertence or attorney neglect’ in determining whether to allow a late filing.”