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CS-L 706.1

Letter to the Sheriff

Illinois · Illinois Supreme Court · Effective August 1, 2020

This form is a letter that a person sends to the Sheriff's office to ask them to officially deliver a Small Claims Summons and a Small Claims Complaint to the person or people they are suing. It lists what documents must be included with the letter.

Open the official PDFfrom Illinois Supreme Court

Where this fits in a case

General & info

Information / general use — not tied to one step of a case

This form is used when a person has filed a Small Claims Complaint and needs the Sheriff to serve the official court papers to the defendant(s).

Usually filed by the person starting the case.

Official instructions

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

Common questions

Who fills out this form?
The person filing the small claims case (the Plaintiff) fills out this letter. It is addressed to the Sheriff.
What documents must I include when I send this letter?
You must include three copies of the Small Claims Summons for each defendant, one copy of the Small Claims Complaint for each defendant, and payment for the service fees. You also need a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
What happens after the Sheriff serves the papers?
The Sheriff will complete a Proof of Service form and mail it back to you in the envelope you provided.

Revision history

No changes recorded since we started tracking this form on October 9, 2026. The current version took effect August 1, 2020.

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