--- title: "South Carolina Eviction Process and Court Timeline | MCC" description: "South Carolina eviction court steps: answer 10 days, writ Up to 5 days, lockout 24 hours, constable or sheriff. From official pages, with the earliest dates and" url: "https://mcc-solutionsnj.com/tools/eviction-process-south-carolina" --- Eviction process · South Carolina # South Carolina eviction process and court timeline What happens after the landlord files: time to answer or appear, judgment to writ, writ to lockout, who carries out the lockout and right to counsel (statewide), from the state's own pages. **Short answer.** After the magistrate's rule to vacate is served, the tenant has ten days to show cause why not to be ejected. Who carries out a lockout: constable or sheriff. ## At a glance Time to answer or appear After the magistrate's rule to vacate is served, the tenant has ten days to show cause why not to be ejected. "ten days after service of a copy of such rule" Source 1 Judgment to writ After a verdict for the landlord, the magistrate issues the writ of ejectment within five days. "shall within five days issue a writ of ejectment" Source 1 Writ to lockout The officer gives the occupants twenty-four hours to leave voluntarily. "give the occupants twenty-four hours to vacate voluntarily" Source 1 Who carries out the lockout Constable or sheriff. The magistrate's constable or the county sheriff carries out the ejectment. "the constable or special constable or the sheriff of the county" 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. "An eviction right to counsel is created by an enacted law that, at a minimum:" Source 2, 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):** Thursday, December 17, 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 (0 days after the judgment, which isn't dated here) - **Earliest lockout:** no date (24 hours after the writ, which isn't dated here) Another date: [open the estimator](/tools/eviction-timeline-estimator?state=sc). ## 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) ## Worth knowing The rule to vacate is issued by a magistrate. Rent keeps accruing while the tenant stays, and accepting rent doesn't waive the landlord's right to ejectment (27-37-150). **Not stated on the pages we read:** court, filing fee, hearing after filing, paying to stop the case, diversion or mediation (statewide). ## Sources - [South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 27, Chapter 37 (Ejectment of Tenants)](https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t27c037.php) (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 **How long does a tenant in South Carolina have to respond?** After the magistrate's rule to vacate is served, the tenant has ten days to show cause why not to be ejected. **When can a South Carolina landlord get the writ after winning?** After a verdict for the landlord, the magistrate issues the writ of ejectment within five days. **How long between the writ and a lockout in South Carolina?** The officer gives the occupants twenty-four hours to leave voluntarily. **Who carries out an eviction in South Carolina?** Constable or sheriff. The magistrate's constable or the county sheriff carries out the ejectment. The officer acts on the court's order. **Anything else to know about South Carolina evictions?** The rule to vacate is issued by a magistrate. Rent keeps accruing while the tenant stays, and accepting rent doesn't waive the landlord's right to ejectment (27-37-150). 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) · [Rhode Island](/tools/eviction-process-rhode-island) · [Texas](/tools/eviction-process-texas) ## Keep rental records in order [Bookkeeping for landlords](/bookkeeping/for/small-landlords)[Call (908) 444-6373](tel:+19084446373)