Where Defendant Is in Default

for Failure To Plead (a) Where a defendant is in default for fail- ure to plead pursuant to Section 10-8, the plaintiff may file a written motion for default which shall be acted on by the clerk not less than seven days from the filing of the motion, without placement on the short calendar. (b) If a party who has been defaulted under this section files an answer before a judgment after default has been rendered by the judicial author- ity, the default shall automatically be set aside by operation of law unless a claim for a hearing in damages or a motion for judgment has been filed. If a claim for a hearing in damages or a motion for judgment has been filed, the default may be set aside only by the judicial authority. A claim for a hearing in damages or motion for judgment shall not be filed before the expiration of fifteen days from the date of notice of issuance of the default under this subsection. (P.B. 1978-1997, Sec. 363A.) (Amended June 21, 2010, to take effect Jan. 1, 2011; amended on an interim basis pursuant to Section 1-9 (c) on June 12, 2015, to take effect Aug. 1, 2015; amended June 24, 2016, to take effect Jan. 1, 2017.)