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EVICTION
The material provided
here is for informational purposes only. It
is not intended to be and should not be
construed as legal advice.
Anyone facing an eviction
should contact a lawyer or seek assistance
from a legal aid office or a Housing
Specialist at the Superior Court. The
information below is only a summary.
WHAT IS EVICTION?
Eviction, also known as Summary
Process, is a legal process a landlord must use
to remove a tenant from a house, apartment, or
room. The following is a brief overview of the
important steps in the eviction process,
excerpted from Tenants
Rights: Eviction,
and Helping Yourself Through the Eviction
Process, by the Connecticut Network for
Legal Aid:
- Notice to Quit: this is
a legal document that your landlord sends to
you to tell you that he/she is asking you to
leave the property. It is delivered by a
Marshal. It is the first step in the eviction
process (except for people in subsidized
housing who will receive a
Pre-termination Notice, which tells the
tenant what the problem is and how they might
resolve it). A Notice to Quit does not mean
you have to leave right away. Your landlord
must go through the entire eviction process to
get you out, and this is the first step he/she
is required to take to let you know he/she
wants to evict you. You should contact a
lawyer as soon as you receive the Notice to
Quit.
- Summons and Complaint:
If you decide to remain in the rental and
fight the eviction, the Summons and Complaint
is the next document you will receive, also
delivered by a Marshal. This document has a
box marked RETURN DATE. You must go to the
court no more than two days after the return
date and file an Appearance form. Everyone
whose name is on the Summons must go and file
an Appearance form for themselves. The
Complaint form has the landlord’s explanation
of why he/she wants you out of the rental. If
you want to have a chance to avoid an
eviction, you must take the proper steps to
respond to the Summons and Complaint or you
will lose the case by default and the landlord
can have the Marshal move you out as soon as
ten days after the return date.
- Appearance: The
Appearance is the form you file at the court
in response to the Summons and Complaint, to
let your landlord know that you plan to fight
the eviction. When the case goes to court, you
will be referred to as the Defendant, and your
landlord will be referred to as the Plaintiff.
- Answer: After completing
the Appearance, you can then file the Answer
form. The clerk will provide you with the
form. On the form will be information spelling
out your landlord’s complaint(s). You will
need to read each numbered paragraph and
circle your response on the Answer form
(Agree, Disagree, Don’t Know). There are also
several Special Defenses listed on the Answer
form. Check any that apply to you and fill in
the blanks. If you have additional comments,
there is space at the bottom of the form where
you can write them in. You have to sign the
form. Also, you have to immediately mail a
copy of the Answer to your landlord or your
landlord’s attorney, if he/she has one. If you
don’t do this, you could automatically lose
the case.
- Hearing: Once all the
required documents have been filed, a Hearing
will be scheduled. The clerk’s office will
mail you a Notice of Court Hearing to advise
you when the case will be heard in court. This
is your opportunity to present your side of
the case. If you do not have an attorney to
represent you by this point, it may be in your
interest to get legal assistance and
representation. Because this is a civil matter
you are not entitled to an attorney at no
cost, but you may be able to get legal help
through a legal aid agency, or find an
attorney through a lawyer referral service. In
any event, you must appear on the hearing date
or you may lose the case by default.
- Judgment/Agreement: The
Hearing may result in a judgment for you or
against you. If the judgment is for you, you
can stay in the rental. If the judgment is
against you, the landlord can start taking
steps to have you removed. However, you may be
able to get a Stay of Execution which will
give you more time. The judge decides whether
or not to grant a stay, and the maximum is
three months. If you and your landlord were
able to come to an agreement, then you will
have to comply with the terms of the agreement
in order to stay in the rental.
- Execution: The Execution
is the document that gives the Marshal the
power to remove you, your family, and your
belongings from the rental. The Marshall has
to notify you 24 hours before removing you,
but he/she is not required to speak to you
personally. The Marshal may leave a written
notice for you.
This is only a brief look at the
eviction process. Each case is different, and
there are many issues that can come up in any
eviction case. You can find more information on
the eviction process in these publications:
- The Connecticut Network for
Legal Aid offers publications that provide
information about the eviction process, tenants rights & helping yourself through the
eviction process: http://ctlawhelp.org/self-help-guides/housing/evictions.
These are also available in print from the
legal aid agencies that serve your community.
- The State Judicial Branch has
an "Official
Court Webforms" link to housing forms
you will need for the eviction process.
- These publications offer more
detailed information on the process, but in
order to protect your rights and interests,
you may need legal assistance.
GETTING LEGAL ASSISTANCE:
Whatever the circumstances, it is
best to get legal advice and representation when
you are facing an eviction. You can contact Statewide Legal
Services (SLS) for information about the
eviction process, and if you qualify for legal
assistance SLS can refer you to the legal aid
agency that serves your city or town. All of the
legal aid agencies that take referrals from SLS
are prepared to intervene on behalf of income
eligible individuals, right up to the day before
the marshal serves the execution order.
TO FIND PROVIDERS IN
CONNECTICUT'S COMMUNITY RESOURCES DATABASE:
Search by service name:
Landlord/Tenant
Assistance
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SOURCES: Tenants
Rights: Eviction, and Helping Yourself
Through the Eviction Process, by Legal Assistance Resource Center
of Connecticut
PREPARED BY: 211/kq
CONTENT LAST REVIEWED: October2012
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