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ATJ 1405.2

Affirmative Defenses

Illinois · Illinois Supreme Court · Effective September 1, 2025

This form is used to list reasons why the person filing the answer believes the other party should not win, even if the other party's claims are true. It requires the filer to state the name of each defense and provide facts supporting it.

Open the official PDFfrom Illinois Supreme Court

Where this fits in a case

Respond

Stage: Respond

This form is used when a person needs to file an Answer or Response in a case and has specific defenses to raise against the claims made by the other party. It must be filed at the same time as the Answer or Response.

Either party may file.

Official instructions

How-to guides published by the court for this form.

Common questions

What are affirmative defenses?
Affirmative defenses are reasons why the other party should not win, even if everything the other party claims is true.

Revision history

No changes recorded since we started tracking this form on October 9, 2026. The current version took effect September 1, 2025.

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