Eviction process and court timeline by state

It depends on the state and on the court's calendar. On the official pages we read, the earliest hearing ranges from 2 days after filing (Alaska) to 30 days (Massachusetts), and the stated wait between judgment and the writ runs up to 10 days (Colorado). Add the time before filing (the notice) and after the writ (the lockout notice), and even the earliest path is usually a few weeks; a contested case or a busy docket takes longer.

Where the pages we read give a wait after judgment: Alabama (7 days), Arizona (5 days), Colorado (10 days), Connecticut (5 days (not Sundays or holidays)), Delaware (10 days), District of Columbia (48 hours), Georgia (7 days), Kentucky (7 days), Louisiana (24 hours), Maine (7 days), Maryland (7 court days), Massachusetts (10 days), Michigan (10 days), New Jersey (3 court days), New Mexico (3 days), North Carolina (10 days), Pennsylvania (10 days), Rhode Island (6 days), Texas (6 days) and Washington (5 court days). An appeal, a stay or a payment agreement can push it back.

A public officer, never the landlord alone. The pages we read name only the sheriff in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming, and other or additional officers in Alaska (peace officer), Arizona (constable), Connecticut (state marshal), Delaware (constable), District of Columbia (U.S. Marshals Service), Hawaii (sheriff, police officer or civil process server), Kansas (process server named in the writ), Kentucky (sheriff or constable), Louisiana (sheriff, constable or marshal), Maine (sheriff or constable), Maryland (sheriff or constable), Massachusetts (sheriff or constable), Michigan (court officer, bailiff or sheriff), Nebraska (constable or sheriff), Nevada (sheriff or constable), New Jersey (special Civil Part Officer), New York (marshal, sheriff or constable), Ohio (sheriff, police officer, constable or bailiff), Pennsylvania (sheriff or certified constable), Rhode Island (sheriff or constable), South Carolina (constable or sheriff), Texas (sheriff or constable) and Utah (sheriff or constable). Changing locks or removing belongings without the court's order and that officer is not part of the court process.

Some states say so. On the pages we read, paying the rent owed (often with costs) can stop or stay the case in Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin, each with its own deadline and conditions. Elsewhere the official pages we read only describe paying during the notice period, which is the step covered by the notice pages.

Statewide: a right-to-counsel law or program in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska and Washington (some limited to certain tenants); the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel's tracker of enacted laws (checked November 2026) lists no statewide law in the other states, though some cities and counties have their own. A diversion or mediation program in Alaska, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico and Virginia, on the pages we read. The state court pages linked in each row list legal aid and self-help contacts.

A cell is filled only after we read it on a statute or state court page. So far 51 jurisdictions have at least one confirmed fact. Many single cells are blank for the same reason. The court's own self-help pages are the place to check in the meantime.