Q: What type of legal document do I need to file to request that a court ORDER Unemployment Agency to take paper Applicatio
I am from Illinois and I recently tried to file for unemployment due to COVID-19 by mailing a paper copy of the official IDES unemployment form(which I downloaded and printed from a PDF file on their website).
I received a call days later that they would not accept paper applications and that I could only file online or by phone.The problem is that the IDES website is glitchy and hasn't been able to complete the process in half a dozen tries,and I haven't been able to get through on their hotline number for over a week.So the paper option and mailing is the only way.
They told me they wouldn't accept a paper copy because of the overflow of online Applications,so basically because it's inconvenient for them.
BUT they have the paper document option on their website.
This is the only way I can see myself being able to get processed and approved for benefits.
Is there some kind of injunction that I can request from a judge to force them to process my PAPER Application?
A:
In general, an agency has the ability to promulgate administrative rules. If their refusal to accept a paper application effectively denied your benefits, it might be possible. Under the current circumstances where the majority of the population is under a stay-at-home order, nearly all government agencies are short-staffed and your stubborn insistence on tendering a paper application (especially if you were to seek injunctive relief) would delay your benefits by weeks or months.
The reason that you cannot speak with someone on the telephone is the same reason they don't want you to tender a paper application - there's nobody there. Continue to reapply online.
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