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Rule 367.Rehearing in Reviewing Court

Article III. Civil Appeals Rules · Part F. Other Provisions · Last amended 2017 · Last verified July 20, 2026

In one sentenceRule 367 sets the deadline, length limit, and procedure for asking a reviewing court to reconsider its decision.

Full Text of Ill. S. Ct. R. 367

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

(a) Time; Length. A petition for rehearing may be filed within 21 days after the filing of the judgment, unless on motion the time is shortened or enlarged by the court or a judge thereof. Motions to extend the time for petitioning for rehearing are not favored and will be allowed only in the most extreme and compelling circumstances. Unless authorized by the court or a judge thereof, the petition shall be limited to 27 pages or, alternatively, 8,100 words, and in either case be supported by a certificate of compliance in accordance with Rule 341(c).
(b) Contents. The petition shall state briefly the points claimed to have been overlooked or misapprehended by the court, with proper reference to the particular portion of the record and brief relied upon, and with authorities and argument, concisely stated in support of the points. Reargument of the case shall not be made in the petition.
(c) Form and Service. For the petition and any answer or reply (see paragraph (d)), the form, cover, and service shall conform to the requirements for briefs (see Rule 341), including the submission of duplicate paper copies, if required.
(d) Answer; Reply; Oral Argument. No answer to a petition for rehearing will be received unless requested by the court or unless the petition is granted. No substantive change in the relief granted or denied by the reviewing court may be made on denial of rehearing unless an answer has been requested. If the petition is granted or if an answer is requested, the opposing party shall have 21 days from the request or the granting of the rehearing to answer the petition, and petitioner shall have 14 days after the due date of the answer within which to file a reply. Unless authorized by the court or a judge thereof, the answer shall be limited to 27 pages or, alternatively, 8,100 words, the reply shall be limited to 10 pages or, alternatively, 3,000 words, and each must be supported by a certificate of compliance in accordance with Rule 341(c). The petition shall be served on opposing counsel and proof of service filed with the clerk. The briefs of the parties, the petition for rehearing, the answer, and the reply shall stand as briefs on the rehearing. Oral argument will be permitted only if ordered by the court on its own motion.
(e) Limitation on Petitions in Appellate Court. When the Appellate Court has acted upon a petition for rehearing and entered judgment on rehearing no further petitions for rehearing shall be filed in that court.
End

Plain-English Summary

A party unhappy with a reviewing court's decision has 21 days to file a petition for rehearing, and extensions of that deadline are granted only in the most extreme and compelling circumstances. The petition itself is capped at 27 pages or 8,100 words and needs its own certificate of compliance, just like a brief.

Rather than rearguing the whole case, the petition has to point to specific points the court overlooked or misunderstood, tying each one to the record and the original briefs. No answer to the petition is filed unless the court requests one or grants the petition; if either happens, the opposing party gets 21 days to answer and the petitioner gets 14 more days for a reply, each subject to its own length limit. Oral argument on rehearing happens only if the court orders it on its own.

In the Appellate Court, this process has a hard stop: once that court has ruled on a rehearing petition, no further rehearing petitions can be filed in that same case there.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long after judgment does a party have to file a petition for rehearing?
21 days, and extensions of that deadline are granted only in the most extreme and compelling circumstances.
How long can a rehearing petition run?
27 pages or 8,100 words, supported by its own certificate of compliance modeled on the one required for briefs.
Can the petition reargue the whole appeal?
No. It has to identify specific points the court overlooked or misapprehended, with references to the record and the original briefs — not repeat the earlier argument.
Does the other party automatically get to respond to a rehearing petition?
No. An answer is filed only if the court requests one or grants the petition; the petitioner then gets a further chance to reply.
Can a party file a second rehearing petition in the Appellate Court?
No. Once the Appellate Court has ruled on a rehearing petition and entered judgment on it, no further rehearing petitions may be filed in that court.

Committee Comments and Commentary

(December 17, 1993)

The rule is modified to reflect that all types of reviewing court dispositions are subject to the rehearing procedures and time limits (see Woodson v. Chicago Board of Education (1993), 154 Ill. 2d 391).
(Revised February 1982) This rule is based upon former Rule 44.
Paragraph (a) As adopted in 1967, paragraph (a) changed the time limit provided in former Rule 44 to 21 days in accordance with the general principle that time periods should be multiples of seven days. The flat prohibition against extensions of time appearing in former Rule 44 was removed in favor of a statement that extensions were not favored. In 1976, the paragraph was amended to strengthen the language disfavoring extensions of time.
(Paragraph (b) This paragraph is the second and third sentences of former Rule 41(1) without change of substance.
Paragraph (c) This paragraph was derived from a part of the first sentence of former Rule 44(1) and the third sentence of paragraph (2) of that rule. There was no change of substance until 1982, when the rule was reworded to specifically require that the parties furnish the Reporter of Decisions a copy of any rehearing petition or any motion seeking to change the time for filing a rehearing petition.
Paragraph (d) This paragraph is based primarily upon former Rule 44(3). It does not change the preexisting practice.
Paragraph (e) This new provision is applicable only to the Appellate Court. When that court has twice considered a case, once initially and a second time on rehearing, there would seem to be no need for further consideration, especially when there is a higher court from which relief can be sought. See Rules 315(b), 316, and 317 as to the date from which the time for seeking Supreme Court review begins to run.

Amendment History

Amended October 1, 1976, effective November 15, 1976; amended February 19, 1982, effective April 1, 1982; amended April 10, 1987; amended June 12, 1987, effective August 1, 1987; amended December 17, 1993, effective February 1, 1994; amended October 14, 2005, effective January 1, 2006; amended May 24, 2006, effective September 1, 2006; amended December 29, 2009, effective immediately; amended Dec. 11, 2014, eff. Jan. 1, 2015; amended Dec. 9, 2015, eff. Jan. 1, 2016; amended Mar. 8, 2016, eff. immediately; amended Aug. 15, 2016, eff. immediately; amended June 22, 2017, eff. July 1, 2017; amended Sept. 15, 2017, eff. Nov. 1, 2017.

Source & verification. Rule text, official Committee Comments, and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the Illinois Supreme Court Rules, promulgated by the Supreme Court of Illinois. Last verified July 20, 2026. · Official source
Also known as: petition for rehearing appealrehearing deadline appellate courtrehearing page limitreargument on appealsecond petition for rehearing