Motion to Strike in Illinois: Grounds, Timing, and Drafting

A motion to strike in Illinois is a request under Section 2-615 of the Code of Civil Procedure asking the court to remove legally deficient or improper material from an opponent’s complaint, answer, affirmative defense, or counterclaim.¹ It attacks the pleading on its face. You are not arguing the other side has the facts wrong; you are arguing that even accepting every allegation as true, the pleading fails as a matter of law, violates the pleading rules, or contains material that does not belong.

The mechanics matter. File the wrong type of motion, miss the timing window, or draft the arguments too broadly, and you can lose objections you needed to keep alive.

Section 2-615 or Section 2-619

Before anything else, figure out which motion you actually want. This is the most common mistake in Illinois motion practice, and the two sections are not interchangeable.

A 2-615 motion looks only at the four corners of the pleading. It says the document itself is defective: the claim isn’t legally recognized, the count mashes together three theories, the required contract exhibit is missing, half the paragraphs are inflammatory background with no legal bearing.

A 2-619 motion raises something outside the pleading that kills the claim even if the pleading is drafted perfectly. The statute lists nine specific grounds, including that the statute of limitations has run, the claim was already resolved in a prior judgment, the plaintiff lacks capacity to sue, or the claim is barred by some other affirmative matter.² A 2-619 motion often needs supporting affidavits because the point you’re making doesn’t appear on the face of the complaint.

The practical test: is your objection “this is badly drafted or legally insufficient as written”? That’s 2-615. Is it “the pleading might be fine, but here’s an outside fact that defeats it”? That’s 2-619.

If you have arguments under both, Section 2-619.1 lets you combine them in one filing, but the motion must be divided into clearly labeled parts, each identifying whether it relies on 2-615 or 2-619 and stating its grounds separately.³ Blending the two standards into one argument frustrates the court and weakens the filing.

Grounds That Actually Work

You need a recognized legal basis under 2-615. Most successful motions rely on one or two of the following.

Immaterial or Scandalous Allegations

An allegation is immaterial when it has no bearing on the legal claims or defenses even if entirely true. Background narrative that serves no legal purpose, inflammatory characterizations of a party, and redundant recitations of facts already stated elsewhere are all fair targets. Courts will also strike content included only to prejudice the judge or jury.

Legal Insufficiency

A pleading that fails to state a valid legal claim or defense is legally insufficient. This is the “even if everything you allege is true, the law doesn’t give you what you’re asking for” argument. A breach of contract count that never identifies an actual agreement, or an affirmative defense that invokes a doctrine which doesn’t apply to the facts pleaded, can be struck on this ground.¹

Format and Exhibit Defects

Illinois imposes specific structural rules on pleadings. Section 2-603 requires each separate legal claim capable of supporting its own recovery to appear in its own numbered count, with each count divided into consecutively numbered paragraphs containing a single allegation.⁴ A complaint that jams three different legal theories into a single count is vulnerable.

Section 2-606 requires that when a claim or defense rests on a written document, such as a contract or a promissory note, a copy must be attached as an exhibit. The only exception is when the party files an affidavit explaining that the document isn’t accessible.⁵ Missing exhibits are one of the easiest defects to spot.

Matching Scope to Defect

The scope of your motion should match the scope of the problem. A few irrelevant paragraphs get struck as paragraphs. An entire count built on a nonexistent legal theory gets struck as a count. Complaints that fail top to bottom get struck as a whole. Overreaching invites denial.

How the Court Decides It

The standard the judge applies is the reason many 2-615 motions fail. The court looks only at the face of the challenged pleading. It does not consider outside evidence, affidavits, or facts not alleged in the document. All well-pleaded facts are taken as true, and the court draws every reasonable inference in favor of the party who filed the pleading.

If there is any reasonable construction of the allegations that supports a valid claim or defense, the motion is likely to be denied. Illinois courts treat striking pleadings as a serious remedy and won’t grant it over technical quibbles. Section 2-612 makes this explicit: a pleading is not defective if it reasonably informs the opposing party of the nature of the claim or defense they need to address.⁶ If you can tell what the other side is alleging and why, a motion aimed at imprecise wording is unlikely to succeed.

Timing and Waiver

When you file matters, and the consequences differ by the type of defect.

For objections to formal defects, such as formatting errors, missing exhibits, or immaterial allegations, file the motion before you file your answer. Once you file a responsive pleading, you generally waive those objections. Section 2-612(c) says it directly: pleading defects not objected to in the trial court are waived.⁶ Answer the complaint first, then try to strike a paragraph as immaterial, and you may have already lost the argument.

The exception is substantive legal sufficiency. A pleading that completely fails to state a cause of action can be challenged at any stage, including after trial or on appeal. A court should not enter judgment on a claim the law doesn’t recognize regardless of when the issue surfaces.

Safest practice: file within the initial 30-day response window, and combine formal and substantive objections in the same filing. Waiting buys nothing.

Drafting the Motion

Section 2-615(b) demands specificity. You must explain exactly where and why the pleading falls short.¹ A general complaint that the opposing pleading is “defective” will not carry the motion. The filing needs:

A standard case caption and number.
The statutory basis — 735 ILCS 5/2-615, and 2-619.1 if you are combining with a 2-619 argument.
Specific identification of the material you want struck. “Paragraphs 12 through 15 of Count III” works. “Portions of the complaint” does not.
The legal defect for each targeted item, tied to a recognized 2-615 ground.
The relief you want. The statute authorizes several forms, including striking specific content, dismissing the action, ordering a more definite statement, or adding or dismissing parties. The court needs to know which one you are asking for.

Most circuit court local rules expect a memorandum of law developing your arguments with citations to Illinois case authority, and judges expect one for any non-routine motion. A Notice of Motion setting the date, time, and courtroom for presentation goes with the filing.

Every document you file must be signed by counsel or, for a self-represented party, by the party. Under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 137, that signature certifies that you conducted a reasonable investigation and that the motion is grounded in fact and existing law.⁷

Filing, Service, and Getting a Hearing

Illinois circuit courts require electronic filing for civil cases through the statewide eFileIL system.⁸ Submit the motion, the memorandum of law, and the Notice of Motion through the portal. Emergency situations may permit alternative filing methods, but those are narrow.

After filing, serve the motion and all accompanying papers on every other party. Service rules vary by county, so check your local circuit court rules for the required method and timing. In Cook County, for example, the certificate of service and copies of the motion must be served on all parties within three court days of filing.⁹

Getting the motion in front of a judge usually requires coordinating a hearing date with the clerk or the judge’s chambers. Some courts run a motion call on designated days; others schedule individually. The Notice of Motion you served must reflect the actual hearing date and location.

After the Ruling

If the motion is granted, the court removes the offending content. Section 2-615(d) gives the court broad discretion over what happens next: it may allow or require the opposing party to replead or amend, or it may terminate part or all of the case.¹ On a first successful motion, courts almost always grant leave to amend. Section 2-616 backs this up by allowing amendments at any time before final judgment on fair terms.¹⁰

Dismissal of the count or the entire case usually comes only after the opposing party has already had one or more chances to fix the pleading and could not.

If the motion is denied, the challenged pleading stands and the case moves toward discovery and trial. A denied motion to strike is not appealable on its own; the issue is preserved for appeal from a final judgment.

Sanctions Risk

Filing a motion to strike as a delay tactic carries real financial exposure. Rule 137 authorizes sanctions against any attorney or party who signs a motion lacking a reasonable basis in fact or law, or filed for an improper purpose such as delay or driving up the other side’s costs.⁷

The standard is objective: would a reasonable attorney, after reasonable investigation, have believed the motion was well grounded? Judges evaluate the filing based on what was known at the time, not with hindsight. Sanctions can include payment of the other side’s reasonable attorney fees and expenses caused by the filing. A motion for sanctions must be filed within 30 days of final judgment or, if a post-judgment motion is filed, within 30 days of the ruling on that motion. Any sanctions order must state the court’s reasoning with specificity.

None of this discourages a legitimate motion. Rule 137 targets objectively unreasonable filings, not arguments that simply lose. But a motion that amounts to nitpicking language which clearly communicates a valid claim will draw denial, and opposing counsel will remember when fees are on the table.

1
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-615 – Motions With Respect to Pleadings
2
FindLaw. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-619 – Involuntary Dismissal
3
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-619.1 – Combined Motions
4
FindLaw. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-603 – Form of Pleadings
5
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-606 – Exhibits
6
FindLaw. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-612 – Insufficient Pleadings
7
Supreme Court of Illinois. Illinois Supreme Court Rule 137 – Signing of Pleadings, Motions and Other Documents – Sanctions
8
Office of the Illinois Courts. Circuit Court E-Filing
9
Circuit Court of Cook County. Part 2 – Hearing of Motions
10
Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 735 ILCS 5/2-616 – Amendments