Motion To Vacate Traffic Tickets

Last updated on April 30, 2021

If you have convictions for traffic tickets on your record, Driver Defense Team may be able to help remove them. If you did not appear in court for the original ticket, our office may be able to file a “Motion to Vacate” the traffic ticket. In other words, it might be possible to reopen your case. Once the case is open again, we can attempt to resolve it in a way that is more favorable to you. Removing a conviction from your driving record can have many benefits. Possible benefits include:

• Removing or shortening a suspension on your license;
• Reducing insurance rates;
• Reinstating your license;
• Improving your Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) record or Motor Vehicle Record (MVR).

 

I want to vacate my conviction. What is the process?

• First, gather as much information about your ticket that you can, such as the ticket number, original court date and disposition. If you do not have this information, you can obtain your driving abstract from any Illinois Secretary of State office. Or, you can hire Driver Defense Team to obtain it on your behalf.

• Next, call or message our staff at Driver Defense Team. We are open six days a week. Our attorneys and legal assistants will take down all of your information, confirm that we can hep you, and quote you a flat fee for our services.

• If your case is eligible to be reopened, there is a filing fee that must be paid to the clerk’s office. The fee varies by county and by type of conviction. Our legal fees to represent you will usually include this fee.

• Depending on the courthouse, your attorney can likely file the motion without you present. After that motion is filed, you will usually be given a new court date. While it is always a good idea to appear in court for your case, you may be excused in certain circumstances. This is something that should be discussed with our staff on a case by case basis.

• If your motion to vacate is granted and your case is dismissed, you will have nothing else to do. If your motion is granted and you receive court supervision, you will be responsible for complying with the terms of the supervision. This generally includes paying court costs and fines. The court will typically give you time to pay these.

In either of these scenarios, if your motion to vacate is granted and the conviction is removed, the Secretary of State must be notified. If Driver Defense Team represents you, our attorneys will make sure that the proper documents are sent to the Secretary of State to clear the conviction.

Can your ticket be reopened?

Whether a conviction can be vacated depends on a number of factors, such as if you appeared in court or not on the original ticket. Also, many courthouses in Illinois have strict time limits on when they will allow a motion to be filed. An experienced attorney from Driver Defense Team can help determine if you can vacate a conviction. Some common of tickets that our attorneys motion are:

Conviction via Mail: If you did not appear in court and mailed in a payment with your ticket, you may be able to undo that conviction. An attorney would file a motion on this case and handle it in court. Depending on your background, your attorney may be able to get the ticket dismissed or obtain court supervision.

Failure to Appear: A judgment of conviction automatically occurs when you either failed to appear in court or failed to mail in a response with your ticket.
It is also very likely that the court will report this to the Illinois Secretary of State, resulting in a hold on your driver’s license. These tickets can generally be reopened. Once a motion to vacate is granted, your attorney will handle the ticket as if it were the original court appearance.

Conviction after Supervision: If you originally received court supervision but failed to comply with the terms of that supervision, a conviction may have been entered. In some cases, we may be able to file a motion to vacate and ask the judge reinstate your supervision. However, in order to do this, you will likely be required to complete the original terms of your supervision sentence.

Cases that cannot be reopened

If you attended court and your case was resolved in front of a judge, you only have 30 days to appeal or withdraw your guilty plea. After those 30 days, you cannot reopen your case. You are stuck with the outcome of the case.

Also, depending on how old the case is, it is possible that a motion to vacate your conviction will be denied. While there is never a guarantee, our attorneys at Driver Defense Team can discuss your likelihood of success.

Our attorneys at Driver Defense Team appear in traffic court in Cook, DuPage and Lake counties nearly everyday. We also cover Will, Kane and McHenry counties. When you hire Driver Defense Team to file a motion to vacate your conviction, you can relax knowing that you will be in good hands. Contact us today to learn more about how to file a motion to vacate.