AUSTIN v. Governor Jay Robert Pritzker, the Illinois State Board of Education, the Illinois Department of Public Health, Dr. Ngozi Ezike, in her official capacity as Illinois Department of Public Health Director, and Dr. Carmen I. Ayala, in her official capacity as Illinois State Board of Education Superintendent, Petitioners (2022)

ORDER

This cause coming to be heard on the emergency motion of petitioners, a response having been filed, and the Court being fully advised in the premises:

IT IS ORDERED: Emergency motion by Petitioners for expedited consideration of Petition for Leave to Appeal and any subsequent proceedings on appeal. Allowed. The petition for leave to appeal is denied. In the exercise of this Court's supervisory authority, the February 4, 2022, temporary restraining order is vacated. See, e.g., Felzak v. Hruby, 226 Ill.2d 382, 394, 315 Ill.Dec. 338, 876 N.E.2d 650 (2007) (when an appeal is rendered moot through happenstance, the judgments of the courts below are vacated). The matter is remanded to the Circuit Court of Sangamon County.

Order entered by the Court.

¶1 I agree with my colleagues that the motion for expedited consideration of the petition for leave to appeal should be allowed. However, I disagree with my colleagues that the appeal has been “rendered moot by happenstance,” and I would allow the petition for leave to appeal. I agree with the partial concurrence and partial dissent from the appellate court's order that only part of the case has been rendered moot by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) decision to suspend the renewal of the rules affected by the temporary restraining order (TRO). See 2022 IL App (4th) 220090-U, ¶ 19, 2022 WL 500581 (Holder White, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part). The TRO can be read as applying to the validity and enforceability of the Governor's executive orders themselves, and this is an important issue that should be resolved by this court. I would deny the motion to stay the TRO pending resolution of the appeal, but I would stay any contempt proceedings arising out of the TRO.

Michael J. Burke, J., joined by Overstreet, J., dissenting. Written dissent to follow.