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Summons & Complaint: Filing and Serving

Once the notice period expires and the tenant has not complied, the landlord files an unlawful detainer lawsuit against the tenant. It is a package of documents comprised of a summons, informing the tenant that he or she has been sued, and the complaint for unlawful detainer, containing all of the necessary allegations required by law, which entitle the landlord to regain legal possession of the premises.

The vast majority of unlawful detainer actions are filed in Superior Court, which has jurisdiction over rents up to $25,000. Once the summons and complaint for unlawful detainer has been filed with the court, it needs to be served immediately.

The law states that a third party must serve the summons and complaint on the tenant. Although it is possible to instruct the Sheriff to serve the summons, the Sheriff is not usually able to serve it as quickly as a regular process server.

If, at all possible, the summons and complaint should be served personally. Verifying the defendant's place of employment is a good idea because it gives the server an additional location to serve the tenant with the summons and complaint. If the tenant is served personally, he or she has five days to apply to the court if they wish to contest the proceedings. In the event we are unable to serve the tenant personally, other methods of service are available.

Substituted service and a court-ordered posting are available as alternatives to personal service. However, by resorting to these alternative methods of service, the court will afford the tenant an additional ten days to respond.

If there is evidence to suggest undesirable traffic in and out of the premises or additional unknown occupants residing there, it is best to serve a pre-judgment claim of right to possession. This "super service" covers all the John and Jane Does who may or may not be living there and puts them on notice that they need to file a reply to the court in order to be heard. Serving a pre-judgment claim of right to possession will take away the ability to delay the eviction at the end of the case, by filing a third party claim. But, there is a ten day delay experienced by serving a pre-judgment claim. The decision on whether to serve the pre-judgment claim is best analyzed on a case-by-case basis after evaluating all criteria.

Our process servers work diligently to effectuate service as fast as possible, frequently on the same day as filed. Our office will keep you fully informed as to the status of service.
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