--- title: "California Eviction Process and Court Timeline | MCC" description: "California eviction court steps: Superior Court, answer 10 court days, lockout 5 days, sheriff. From official pages, with the earliest dates and links." url: "https://mcc-solutionsnj.com/tools/eviction-process-california" --- Eviction process · California # California eviction process and court timeline What happens after the landlord files: court, filing fee, time to answer or appear, writ to lockout, who carries out the lockout and right to counsel (statewide), from the state's own pages. **Short answer.** Cases go to the Superior Court. 10 court days after personal service to file an Answer (weekends and court holidays don't count); more if served another way. Who carries out a lockout: sheriff. ## At a glance Court Superior Court. The superior court of the county where the rental is (an unlawful detainer case). "Superior Court of California, County of San Diego" Source 4 Filing fee $240 when the amount demanded is $10,000 or less; $385 over $10,000 up to $35,000 (statewide schedule effective January 1, 2026). "Complaint or other first paper in unlawful detainer (amount up to $10,000)" Source 7 Time to answer or appear 10 court days after personal service to file an Answer (weekends and court holidays don't count); more if served another way. "You have 10 court days to file an Answer form or other legal forms after you're handed (served)" Source 2 Writ to lockout After the writ, the sheriff serves a Notice to Vacate that gives 5 days to move out. "this gives you 5 days to move out." Source 1 Who carries out the lockout Sheriff. The sheriff serves the Notice to Vacate and locks out a tenant who stays. "If you don't move out, the sheriff can lock you out of your home." Source 1 Right to counsel (statewide) No statewide right to counsel for tenants in eviction cases (as of November 2026, per the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel): its tracker of enacted laws lists no statewide law here. Local: San Francisco (2018), Los Angeles County (2024) and the City of Los Angeles (2025) have their own right-to-counsel laws. "An eviction right to counsel is created by an enacted law that, at a minimum:" Source 8, National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (secondary source) ## Sample timeline: filed Monday, December 7, 2026 **Earliest under the statute; courts' calendars often take longer.** Need the other side served? [Process serving with an affidavit of service](/notary/process-serving). - **Answer due (if served the day of filing):** Monday, December 21, 2026 - **Hearing or trial:** no date (The official pages don't give a period for setting the hearing) - **Judgment:** no date (Follows the hearing, which isn't dated here) - **Writ or warrant of possession:** no date (Not confirmed on an official page) - **Earliest lockout:** no date (5 days after the writ, which isn't dated here) Another date: [open the estimator](/tools/eviction-timeline-estimator?state=ca). ## Want us to handle it? A runner files your papers in person at the clerk's window and sends you a scan of the stamped copy. We file what you prepared; we don't give legal advice. **Price:** Outside New Jersey it goes through our contractor network: quote-based, confirmed before any work starts, and booked once a local contractor accepts. In New Jersey it is from $75 per filing, court fees at cost. Starting rates. Your exact price is quoted after we confirm a local notary/runner, before you pay. [Request a court filing](/notary/court-filing#request) ## Help the official pages point to - Local legal aid, law library or the court's self-help center (source 1) - Bay Area Legal Aid, the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley and the court's Self-Help Center (Santa Clara County's list) (source 6) ## Worth knowing Riverside's chart says the trial is typically set within 20 days; that is a county description, not a statewide rule, so no hearing range is used here. The state guide says a tenant approved for rental help may be able to stop the eviction. **Not stated on the pages we read:** hearing after filing, judgment to writ, paying to stop the case, diversion or mediation (statewide). ## Sources - [California Courts Self-Help Guide: What happens if you lose your eviction case](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/eviction-tenant/lose-case) (checked November 2026) - [California Courts Self-Help Guide: Summons-Unlawful Detainer-Eviction (form SUM-130)](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/eviction-tenant/summons-complaint) (checked November 2026) - [California Courts Self-Help Guide: Eviction cases in California](https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/eviction) (checked November 2026) - [Superior Court of California, County of San Diego: Tenant Frequently Asked Questions](https://sdcourt.ca.gov/sdcourt/civil2/LandlordTenant/LandlordTenantFAQsMain/TenantFAQs) (checked November 2026) - [Superior Court of California, County of Riverside: Tenant's Unlawful Detainer Chart](https://riverside.courts.ca.gov/system/files/tenants_flowchart.pdf) (checked November 2026) - [Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara: Evictions (Unlawful Detainers)](https://santaclara.courts.ca.gov/self-help/self-help-topics/evictions-unlawful-detainers) (checked November 2026) - [Superior Court of California: Statewide Civil Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2026), posted by the Butte County court](https://www.butte.courts.ca.gov/system/files/general/2026-statewide-civil-fee-schedule.pdf) (checked November 2026) - [National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (secondary source): National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel: Enacted Eviction Right to Counsel and Eviction Defense Programs (last modified November 2026)](https://civilrighttocounsel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/RTC_Enacted_Legislation_in_Eviction_Proceedings_FINAL.pdf) (checked November 2026) Sourced from official pages; a few facts from vetted secondary sources, marked "(secondary source)". General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. Not a court form. Earliest under the statute; courts' calendars often take longer. ## Common questions **Which court hears eviction cases in California?** Superior Court. The superior court of the county where the rental is (an unlawful detainer case). **How long does a tenant in California have to respond?** 10 court days after personal service to file an Answer (weekends and court holidays don't count); more if served another way. **How long between the writ and a lockout in California?** After the writ, the sheriff serves a Notice to Vacate that gives 5 days to move out. **Who carries out an eviction in California?** Sheriff. The sheriff serves the Notice to Vacate and locks out a tenant who stays. The officer acts on the court's order. **What does it cost to file in California?** $240 when the amount demanded is $10,000 or less; $385 over $10,000 up to $35,000 (statewide schedule effective January 1, 2026). **Anything else to know about California evictions?** Riverside's chart says the trial is typically set within 20 days; that is a county description, not a statewide rule, so no hearing range is used here. The state guide says a tenant approved for rental help may be able to stop the eviction. Notice step: [notice periods](/tools/landlord-tenant-notice-periods-by-state) · Deposit step: [deposit rules](/tools/security-deposit-rules-by-state) · All states: [eviction process by state](/tools/eviction-process-timeline-by-state) · [Arizona](/tools/eviction-process-arizona) · [Colorado](/tools/eviction-process-colorado) ## Keep rental records in order [Bookkeeping for landlords](/bookkeeping/for/small-landlords)[Call (908) 444-6373](tel:+19084446373)