FAQ

• 1 | How is John W. Callahan different from other license reinstatement attorneys?
• 2 | How long does the driver's license reinstatement process  take inside the state of Illinois?
• 3 | How much does it cost to obtain a driver's license  reinstatement through the Secretary of State?
• 4 | What are the formal reinstatement locations?
• 5 | Legally, what is the burden I need to prove to get my  Illinois driver's license cleared inside the state of Illinois?
• 6 | What is an RDP or restricted driver's permit?
• 7 | What are the hours I can drive on a restricted driving permit?
• 8 | What is the BAIID?
• 9 | Who is BAIID mandatory, or who has to install a BAIID device in their car?
• 10 | Can I use any evaluator or treatment provider in or outside  the state of Illinois?
• 11 | What is the Problem Drive Pointer System?
• 12 | What is the difference between an informal license  reinstatement and a formal administrative license reinstatement hearing?
• 13 | Do I have to install the BAIID device for five years in my car?

1. How is John W. Callahan, Ltd. different from other license reinstatement attorneys?

Previous clients have come into us complaining about their old attorneys and the preparation that they received for the formal administrative hearing in the state of Illinois.  What we typically do with our clients that separates us from those attorneys, is that rather than just take the money up front and tell the clients to get their treatment documents together and meet us either at the Chicago Secretary of State facility or the Joliet Secretary of State facility, we meet with our clients, instruct them as to the specific documents that they need to obtain, and make sure that those documents will be seen as credible by the Secretary of State.  Once the client obtains those documents, we believe that the next step, preparation, is the key to a successful hearing.  Preparation, preparation, preparation.  If we just take your money and tell you to meet us down at the Secretary of State for the hearing, you will not get your license back.  If you prepare, specifically to the questions that you will be asked and make sure that all of the testimony that you give from the time that you got your first DUI to your last DUI, and we go over that factually, and you are consistent with what you told your evaluator through the treatment and tell the Secretary of State, if all the information is accurate and honest, you will get your license back.  This takes more than just one meeting and quite often we will meet with our clients three, four or five times in the office going over a sample formal administrative hearing in the office so that the client knows what to expect when they go in there.  This has greatly enhanced our success rate in getting our clients their license back and that is what separates us from the other attorneys, all in preparation. We work directly with the client in the office to prepare hearings before the real one.  Again, the most important thing in the license reinstatement process is knowing what to expect when you go to a hearing.  The key is preparation.  We meet with the client in the office repeatedly.  We determine whether or not the answers that he or she states are accurate, for example, if you are asked at the Secretary of State hearing about a DUI that happened fifteen years ago and they ask you what time the DUI was and how much alcohol you drank, if the you answer, “Oh, I don't know, it was quite a long time ago and I think I drank five to six beers on the night of the DUI,” that is not a credible answer according to the Secretary of State and you will be denied relief at that Secretary of State hearing.  We help our clients go back and reconstruct the DUI's that happened within the past thirty-five years sometimes.  We request records from the Secretary of State and once the Secretary of State picks up the records of their DUI's, we can then tell the client what BAC they had on the night of the arrest and what time it happened.  This helps the client factually, accurately and truthfully reconstruct the actual events of what happened on those DUI's and then they can be found to give credible answers from the night in question.

At the law offices of John W. Callahan we work with our clients and we do so many hearings that we have created a license reinstatement worksheet.  This worksheet contains almost every single question that you will be asked at the formal administrative hearing.  We help our clients prepare the worksheet with honest and truthful answers. We compare the client's answers to what they told their evaluator and their treatment providers, as well as we go through the comparisons to what they told the Secretary of State if they have had previous formal administrative hearings with other attorneys.  Once we prepare the worksheet and all of the facts seems consistent, from the date of the DUI to the treatment that they perform with an evaluator,  then we prepare the clients to give those facts to the Secretary of State.  We practice and practice and practice in our office until we get the answers down and consistent.  What this does is prevents nervousness and/or panic at the actual hearing in the Secretary of State's office and when you are asked a difficult question, for example, how much alcohol and how much time did you drink on the night of the first DUI, the client will know the answer and be able to give it to the Secretary of State without panicking.  This helps keep our client calm and therefore the answers come across as more credible and thus results in a higher success rate at the formal administrative hearings.

Another key to keep our clients calm and prepared.  When the client is calm and prepared, the process is easy.  In the past, I have seen clients who go into the office thinking that they are ready for a hearing, when, in fact, they have not been completely prepared by their attorneys.  The clients leaves the formal administrative hearing with sweat on their forehead after being in there much longer than they should have due to the fact that they were not thoroughly prepared and did not give good and credible answers to the Secretary of State.  If you are not prepared and you do not know 99 percent of the questions that you will be asked at the hearing, the chance of you failing at that Secretary of State formal administrative hearing are greatly increased.   If you want success, you need to know what questions you are going to be asked and you need to know the answers that you will give to most of the questions.  This does not mean that we are preparing our clients like robots to go in and give the Secretary of State a bunch of lies that they have prepared in our office.  The truth is, you need to get the facts of what actually happened at the DUI's and prepare them and mentally know them by the time you go into the Secretary of State so that, again, the truth can be told and your answers will be credible with the Secretary of State.

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2. How long does the driver's license reinstatement process take inside the State of Illinois?

At the law offices of John W. Callahan we have helped clients get their driver's license reinstated in Illinois for years and years.  Our clients often ask us, “How long does the process take?”  The answer to that is relatively simple.  First, we need to find out if the client is eligible for reinstatement and, if that client is eligible, are they eligible for full reinstatement immediately or do they have to go through and obtain a restricted driving permit through the Secretary of State of Illinois?

The next process is up to the client.  Some clients are ready to go to a hearing within six weeks.  Other clients take six months or more.  This all depends on how fast and how thorough the client understands and is prepared for the hearing.  What we have found is when clients are very serious about trying to get their license back immediately, we are able to go and proceed and request a hearing through the Secretary of State in a very short amount of time.  Again, it is all up to the client.  If the client takes the time to understand the facts of their DUI, the treatment that they performed through their evaluator and can factually relate that to the Secretary of State, they will have a very good chance to get their license back.

Once we at the law offices of John W. Callahan feel that the client is ready to go to a hearing, we send a $50 reinstatement application down to the Secretary of State of Illinois and after applying the formal administrative hearing date is set by the Secretary of State and is typically heard within thirty to forty-five days of the application.

After we proceed to the hearing with our client, the Secretary of State will tell the client that the results will typically be given to them within six to eight weeks of the formal hearing.  What we have typically found is that the Secretary of State provides results to our clients in twenty-five to thirty-five days, but, again, the Secretary of State will inform you that the results typically take six to eight weeks.  Should you have any questions about the reinstatement process inside the state of Illinois or have any questions or wish to contact us, feel free to contact us at the number 1-877-4 MY-ILDL (1-877-4 69-4535).

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3. How much does it cost to obtain a driver's license reinstatement through the Secretary of State?

There are several costs.  At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we can guide you through the process of obtaining a driver's license through the formal administrative process. There are several costs besides attorney's fees.  Those include the $50 filing fee when we are ready to proceed and request a formal administrative hearing.  Beyond that, at the law offices of John W. Callahan, we typically have our clients sign an authorization for release of information from the Secretary of State of Illinois and submit that down to the secretary of State requesting any documents or proof of blood alcohol level on all of their DUI arrests.   In addition to that, we also ask for and request the transcripts of any previous hearings that they may have had with other attorneys when a client was denied for their driver's license reinstatement.

Once the client is reinstated, there are several fees that the client must pay.  One is the $500 license reinstatement to the Secretary of State of Illinois in order to clear their license.  There is typically also a BAIID permit and a restricted driving permit.  The  BAIID permit is a private agreement that the client works out with the BAIID provider and the restricted driving permit is $8 for the year.

Should you have any questions about any costs that you might incur and you wish to retain the law offices of John W. Callahan to represent you in a formal administrative hearing, you should contact us immediately at the following number: 1-877-4 MY-ILDL (1-877-469-4535).

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4. What are the formal reinstatement locations?

There are four locations inside the state of Illinois where a client can obtain a formal administrative hearing:

At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we represent clients from anywhere in the State of Illinois, even if they are from the furthest southern tip down near Cairo, all the way up to Western Illinois near the quad cities, but we typically bring these clients to either Chicago or Joliet.  If you live out of state, you still need to go to one of these four locations and at the law offices of John W. Callahan, we will prep you to go down to the Chicago office or the Joliet office if you need a formal administrative hearing.

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5. Legally, what is the burden I need to prove to get my Illinois driver's license cleared inside the state of Illinois

It is very simple.  You have a burden by the preponderance of evidence to prove that you have satisfactorily complied with the treatment recommender's providers and have resolved your alcohol problem and that you will be a safe and responsible driver and pose no risk to the drivers inside the state of Illinois.

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6. What is an RDP?

An RDP is a restricted driving permit issued through the state of Illinois  after someone has gone through the formal administrative hearing process, and had their license somewhat reinstated through the Restricted Driving Permit Program.  It is mandatory that you be placed on a restricted driving permit if you live inside the state of Illinois and have had two DUI arrests within the past ten years.  If this is the case and you are granted a restricted driving permit, you are eligible to get the restricted driving permit for employment purposes, medical reasons, support group and any transportation deemed necessary through the Secretary of State's office.

Typically, on the restricted driving permit a client is able to drive to and from work as long as they provide proof through testimony or written proof to the Secretary of State at the formal administrative for our clients at the Level III – High Risk Nondependent category.  If you have any questions about obtaining license reinstatement, our office can help with those questions and guide you through the process of obtaining your license.

Contact information:

Link to a PDF form of the requirements for the Secretary of State hearing from the Secretary of State

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7. What are the hours I can drive on a restricted driving permit?

An RDP or Restricted Driving Permit can be issued any day of the  week for any hours of the day, as long as the proof is given to the  Secretary of State for a need to drive to and from the office or work  site. In addition to just driving to and from the office, the Secretary of State can issue the RDP for work within the scope of employment, so if you are a driver for a company or you are a supervisor or a  salesman, you can get a restricted driving permit for employment  purposes to drive during the course of work to and from different  locations throughout the state of Illinois. For medical purposes,  clients can obtain the restricted driving permit to travel to and from  the doctor for any appointments for treatment purposes. If a client has to go to AA or obtain alcohol counseling, they can obtain a restricted driving permit for treatment purposes as well.

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8. What is the BAIID?

The BAIID stands for breath alcohol ignition interlock device.  The breath alcohol ignition interlock device is a device that fits in the car, typically costs between $750 and $1,250 dollars to have in the car for the year and is installed mainly when a person is granted a restricted driving permit through the Secretary of State formal administrative hearing process.  When you have the BAIID device installed in your car, the client must provide a breath sample into the BAIID device prior to starting the vehicle each time.  Once the client is driving the BAIID device will beep and the client will have to submit to the BAIID device at random intervals while they are driving.  The BAIID device, once it is hooked up to the client's car, will allow the car to start, but prevents the person from starting the car if the breath sample registers a 0.05 or higher.  If the client blows into the BAIID and the sample is negative and registers a 0, the patient will be able to start their car without incident. We have had clients who have had some problems with the BAIID device in their car after smoking cigarettes, using mouthwash in the morning after they brush their teeth but prior to going into their car, and one client even reported that he had a problem after eating a pizza at a gourmet pizza shop in a mall, yet having no alcohol.  If you have any questions about the BAIID device and how it can apply to a restricted driving permit, you should call the law offices of John W. Callahan to ask about a BAIID device.

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9. Who is BAIID mandatory, or who has to install a BAIID device in their car?

The BAIID (breath alcohol ignition interlock device)  is mandatory to receive a restricted driving permit for: 1) Persons who have either two or three convictions for driving under the influence at any time in or outside the state of Illinois, or; 2) Has received two statutory summary suspensions which resulted from DUI arrests, or the combination of one DUI with a statutory summary suspension from two separate arrests within the past ten years.  Anyone who falls within those categories must apply for a restricted driving permit through the Secretary of State of Illinois and they must obtain a formal administrative hearing for reinstatement.  If the restricted driving permit is approved, the must pay to the Secretary of State a BAIID fee of $240 and an $8 restricted driving permit fee.  Once all of those fees have been applied, the person will receive information from the Secretary of State with information detailing the exact procedures to have the BAIID device installed.  Some people who are eligible for an informal hearing must also place a BAIID device on their car.  Anybody with two convictions for DUI on their record who are not eligible for full reinstatement of driving privileges may seek to renew their restricted driving permit through an informal hearing for each successive year within their revocation periods.

So, again, the first process is to go through the formal administrative hearing when the client is BAIID mandatory.  Once the client receives a restricted driving permit with the BAIID device on, they can obtain an informal hearing to continue every year to keep the BAIID device and the restricted driving permit until they are ready for full license reinstatement.  Once the client is ready for full license reinstatement, they must then apply for a formal administrative hearing again with the Secretary of State to clear everything up and get off the BAIID device.

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10. What are the requirements to obtain a hearing to reinstate my driver's license in the state of Illinois?

The answer to that question is easy and complex at the same time.  At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we can help you through the process of obtaining a driver's license reinstatement inside the state of Illinois, but the first thing we need to determine is what DUI risk classification you are.  There are five different risk classifications that a client must be placed in prior to obtaining a license reinstatement hearing.  What we found with people from out-of-state is that most out-of-state evaluators don't know how to place a client in one of these specific category risks as each state has different methods of classifying clients based on the different state's DUI's.  Illinois works with the following levels:

• 1) Minimal Risk
• 2) Moderate Risk
• 3) Significant Risk
• 4) High Risk Dependent
• 5) High Risk Nondependent

Minimal Risk.
If the uniform report evaluation or the last updated evaluation is more than six months old at the time of the hearing, the clients must submit a current updated evaluation from their treatment provider.  The updated evaluation must be completed by the agency that completed the uniform report evaluation.  In addition to that, in order to be eligible for a formal administrative hearing in the state of Illinois, the client must document completion of the DUI risk education course.  The minimal risk clients are typically eligible for an informal hearing as the only people who can be placed into the minimal risk category are those clients who have had only one DUI.  That DUI could have occurred from outside the state of Illinois or it could have been a DUI in the state of Illinois where the client originally obtained a period of court supervision, which is not a conviction and thus would not revoke the person's license, but then, due to the client having failed to pay fines, fees, costs or done their treatment when the court was monitoring them, the supervision was revoked and a conviction was entered.  When a client inside the state of Illinois  has one DUI as a conviction, they are typically eligible to proceed to an informal hearing  at the minimal risk level, so long as the blow on that first DUI was under a 0.15.

Moderate Risk
In order to obtain a hearing at the Moderate Risk, the Secretary of State mandates that the uniform report evaluation or the last updated evaluation, if the uniform report evaluation or the last updated evaluation is more than six months old at the time of the hearing, the client must also submit a current updated evaluation.  At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we work with our clients to make sure that they have obtained all of these documents prior to going to the hearing.  In fact, we will go over it several times with you in the office so that we make sure that the testimony that you give to the Secretary of State is consistent with that information.  In addition to the evaluations, the client must also document completion of a DUI risk education course and the client must document completion of an early intervention program on the providing agency's letterhead indicating the number of hours completed, the dates of involvement, a summary of what was explored/addressed and the outcome of your involvement.  In addition to that, the client must document completion of any substance abuse treatment recommended by a licensed evaluator or treatment provider. Our moderate risk clients typically still have only one DUI conviction in Illinois, but submitted a BAC level greater than a 0.15 or refused to blow on their first DUI.  It is not typical for any client with more than one DUI arrest to be placed in the moderate risk category.

Significant Risk
At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we are very experienced in seeing clients classified at Significant Risk. The client in the Significant Risk category typically comes to us with at least two, and possibly three, DUI's over the course of more than ten years.  The Significant Risk is mandatory when a client has more than two DUI arrests or two DUI convictions.  It is mandatory that they go to a formal administrative hearing at the Secretary of State in Illinois and as a result we must prepare them for and provide the following information prior to the formal administrative hearing.  The list includes the client providing their uniform report evaluation that is current within six months.  If it is not, they must provide the original evaluation and a current updated evaluation from their treatment provider.  The client must also document completion of a DUI risk education course and the client must also document completion of any substance abuse treatment recommended by a licensed evaluator or treatment provider, including: A) A copy of the individualized treatment plan; B) A copy of the discharge summary; C) A copy of an after-care or continuing care plan; D)  A copy of the continuing care status report.  If no treatment was provided from the evaluator who the client is represented by at the time, the treatment provider must submit a treatment waiver as well.

High Risk Dependent
High Risk Dependent are typically those clients who are in Alcoholics Anonymous and who have typically, but not necessarily, had three DUI's in their lifetime.  It is very important to understand the minimum documents that a client must bring to the evaluation.  In addition to a current updated evaluation, if the uniform report is older than six months, the client must also bring a copy of that.  The client must also document the DUI risk education, a copy of the individualized treatment plan, a copy of the discharge summary, a copy of the after-care/continuing care plan, and a copy of the continuing care status report.  If no treatment was provided by the evaluator, that evaluator must submit a treatment waiver.  What separates the high risk dependent from the Level II – Significant, besides being in AA or other support recovery program, is that the Level III – High Risk Dependent must provide: A) Proof of establishment of a support/recovery program through Alcoholics Anonymous, church, etc.; B) The client must include proof of abstinence; and C) At least three original letters signed and dated within forty-five days of the hearing from individuals, friends, family, etc., who can attest to the client's abstinence from alcohol and drugs for a period of at least twelve months if seeking reinstatement, but no less than six months for a restricted driving permit.

More important than just the documents themselves and all of the treatment proof is the fact that the client who is a High Risk Dependent must clearly know their abstinence date, they must be actively participating, meaning no less than twice a week in AA or another recovery program, and they must be very thorough in their knowledge of that program.  For example, if a client is in AA but does not know the 12 steps or any one of the 12 steps, it is very likely that the Secretary of State will not believe that the client's drinking problem has been contained and therefore that client will be denied at the hearing.  The client should know where their AA meetings are, how often they go, what the physical description of the building is, and what time the meetings are.  They must know the difference between an open and a closed meeting.  These are just a sample of questions that will be asked of a High Risk Dependent client at the hearing and at the law offices of John W. Callahan, we have the experience to aid and help represent the client through the process.

Level III – High Risk Nondependent
The High Risk Nondependent clients typically are those clients who have had three DUI's but are not dependent on alcohol, thus they are not in AA or any other dependency group.  The Secretary of State indicates that that client must submit a current uniform report evaluation, as well as an updated evaluation if that uniform report is more than six months old.  The client must also complete any substance abuse treatment recommended by a licensed evaluator or treatment provider including: A) A copy of the individualized treatment plan; B) A copy of the discharge summary; C) A copy of after-care/continuing care plan; and D) A copy of the continuing care status report.  If no treatment was provided, the evaluator must submit a treatment waiver and the client must also submit at least three original letters signed and dated within forty-five days of the hearing from individuals who can document for at least the last twelve months, but no less than six months, the alcohol/drug use pattern or complete abstinence.  The client must also submit an additional report from the treatment provider explaining why dependency was ruled out and what was the cause of the client's behavior that resulted in three or more DUI dispositions.  This requirement cannot be waived. It has been my experience that the Level III – High Risk Nondependent clients are some of the most difficult clients to obtain a driver's license reinstatement for.  The reason for this is that they have obviously had three DUI's, some involving accidents, but at the same time still deny that they have any drinking problem.  Despite the fact that it is difficult, we are still able in many cases to obtain full reinstatement Are you an out-of-state resident looking to clear your Illinois driver's license so that you can obtain a driver's license in another state?

At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we represent clients from out-of-state who are seeking to clear their Illinois driver's license.  Oftentimes the DUI occurred in the state of Illinois within the past ten to twenty years and it has not affected their driver's license in the state that they currently live in up until now.  With the new linking of computer networks across the Secretaries of State and Department of Motor Vehicles throughout the various states, a new system called the PDPS (Problem Drive Pointer System) has now linked the states up so that they can, in fact, revoke a person's license despite the fact that they have had a valid license in the state they live in for decades.

When this happens, the client should contact John W. Callahan so that we can obtain clearance of their license in Illinois so that they can then be able to obtain a full license reinstatement in their own state.  In order to obtain clearance, there are two ways that the client can go about doing this.  One is through a formal driver's license reinstatement hearing in the state of Illinois. The other is to fill out an out-of-state hearing application.  The difference between the formal hearing and the out-of-state hearing packet is very large.  In order to do a formal license reinstatement hearing, the out-of-state client would need to come into the state of Illinois and actually testify at a hearing in Joliet, Chicago, Mt. Vernon or Springfield.

At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we specialize in representing clients in Joliet and Chicago for formal administrative hearings.  The other method that a client can use is to fill out the out-of-state hearing packet, which entails roughly the same requirements, however, it is very important for the client to understand that in our practice we have noticed that the success rate of clients actually getting their license back after filling out an out-of-state hearing application is much, much less than those who prepare with us and actually go to a formal license reinstatement process.  While our office can help prepare the clients to fill out the out-of-state hearing application, if a client is truly serious about trying to get their license reinstated, we believe that the best method is to go through the formal driver's license hearing in the state of Illinois, as we have somewhat of control and the process is a little bit more straightforward.

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11. What is the Problem Drive Pointer System?

The Problem Drive Pointer System is a computer database that links up all of the various fifty states including states like New York, Florida, Texas, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, California, Arizona and Illinois.  This list is not exhaustive, and many other states are linked into the PDPS system.  What the system does, is it picks up in its database DUI's and other criminal driving charges from one state and links them back to the “home state” where the client currently or at one time had a driver's license.  So, again, the PDPS reports are linking computer networks across the country which can result in the revocation of a driver's license in another state, or will force you to obtain clearance from Illinois before the home state will issue or reissue a driver's license.

An example of what happened to a recent client who lived in Florida and Michigan in the past ten years will shine a light on the PDPS reports.  While the client at one time, more than ten years ago, lived in the state of Illinois and had an Illinois driver's license, he moved to the state of Michigan and no longer had any contact with the state of Illinois.  Unfortunately, he did not close out his Illinois driver's license, and when he picked up a DUI in the state of Michigan, approximately seven years ago, he resolved the case in the state of Michigan.  Michigan never revoked his driver's license for that DUI and he intended to move down to Florida.  What then happened is Illinois through the Problem Drive Pointer System (PDPS) picked up the DUI from Michigan, even though the client no longer lived in Illinois and Illinois issued a hold and a revocation of his driver's license in the state of Illinois.  When the client went to renew his driver's license in Michigan and tried to get a driver's license in Florida, both states denied him a driver's license due to the fact that Illinois had a revocation hold on his license.

The client contacted us.  We were able to set up an alcohol evaluation and treatment for him and we needed to proceed to a formal driver's license hearing in the state of Illinois in order to clear his license so that he could move down to Florida and obtain a valid driver's license down there.  All of this happened with the client not having any contact with the state of Illinois in the past decade.  This serves as an example of how the Problem Driver Pointer System can affect clients who at one time held an Illinois driver's license.

Many clients have asked whether or not this is constitutional and whether or not there is a statute of limitations due to the fact that the DUI's occurred in some cases more than twenty years ago in Illinois yet they have had valid driver's licenses in their states for more than a decade.  The simple answer to that is yes.  Due to the fact that the violation occurred outside of the state of Illinois while the client had an Illinois driver's license.  The Secretary of State's attitude is, that just because they did not find out about it for the past decade, does not mean that the license should not be revoked in the state of Illinois.  So, if you are an out-of-state client, who has recently had a problem renewing your driver's license in your state due to the fact that there was a previous DUI reported to the state of Illinois, contact the law offices of John W. Callahan to attempt to clear your license in the state of Illinois.  Once we do this, you will be able to get a valid driver's license in the current state that you reside in.

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12. What is the difference between an informal license reinstatement and a formal administrative license reinstatement hearing?

The difference between the two is significant.  At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we have experience at informal and formal hearings to obtain license reinstatement inside the state of Illinois.  An informal hearing  is typically for clients who have had one DUI conviction resulting from a violation of supervision on a DUI inside the state of Illinois or if a client has a driver's license in the state of Illinois and picked up a DUI outside the state of Illinois.  The states outside of Illinois will typically report to Illinois a conviction for DUI.  When that conviction is placed on the Illinois Secretary of State driving abstract of the client, his license will be revoked and at that point he or she is eligible for an informal hearing through the Secretary of State.  These hearings can be done at almost any of the Secretary of State field offices located throughout Illinois and are much more “informal” due to the fact that there is no attorney representing the Secretary of State at that hearing, nor is the process being recorded either audibly or by transcription.

A formal administrative hearing, on the other hand, is typically for most clients with two or more DUI's, whether they are within the state of Illinois  or outside the state of Illinois .  These hearings can be done at only four locations at the Secretary of State's offices.  The formal administrative hearings can be done at:

At these hearings, they are “formal” in the fact that they are held in a room at Secretary of State's office, where the client is represented by an attorney and the client is cross-examined upon the formal hearing.  The client must submit testimony under oath.  He is sworn in and the client must face cross-examination by an attorney who represents the Secretary of State. In addition to that, the hearing officer can also ask any questions of a client who is seeking license reinstatement. Therefore, if you are going to go to a formal administrative hearing, you better be ready due to the fact that you are going to be asked questions by no less than three people: 1) Your own attorney; 2) An attorney who represents the Secretary of State; and 3) The formal administrative hearing officer.

At the law offices of John W. Callahan, we have experience in representing clients at both the informal and formal hearings and can guide our clients through the process from start to finish.

#13.  Do I have to install the BAIID Device for five years?

The BAIID device must be installed for ALL instate Petitioners – note In-State Only – who have two or more DUI convictions of a DUI or related offense on their driving record.  This does not mean that if you have two DUIs that you are a five year BAIID mandatory client.  The test is convictions.  Do you have two DUI convictions on your record?  If yes, then if you live in Illinois, you must install the BAIID as a BMO or  BAIID Mandatory Operator.

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