Elmore County District Court
Unlawful Detainer Procedures
*** THE CLERK'S OFFICE IS PROHIBITED FROM GIVING LEGAL ADVICE ***
Each case varies depending on the situation. The following are procedures to be followed:
- Give a 7 day notice to the tenant (for a yearly lease) & 30 days notice (for month to month, expired, or no lease). The notice can be hand delivered, posted on the premises, or sent certified mail. You will need to prepare this notice on your own. The state of Alabama does not provide an initial notice to vacate/move/evict.
- If defendant has not moved after being served with the notice, file an Unlawful Detainer Statement of Claim with the clerk's office along with required fee along with copy of notice & lease agreement. ***If there is no lease & your agreement is oral, a written statement is required as to what your agreement is/was.***
- Once served, the defendant/tenant has 7 business days to file an answer to the court.
- If an answer is received, it will be submitted to the judge for review & setting of a trial.
- If an answer is not received after 7 business days of being served, the plaintiff/landlord can file an application for default judgement (with fee).
- The defendant must be served personally (not posted or mailed) on the statement of claim to apply for a money judgement on the application for default judgement. You may file for a property judgement first and a money judgement later.
- After a judgement is entered, the defendant/tenant has 7 consecutive days to appeal the case to circuit court.
- If no appeal has been filed with the court and the defendant/tenant has not vacated the premises, the plaintiff/landlord can file a request for writ of possession (with fee) after 7 consecutive days of the judgement.
- Request will be submitted to the judge to obtain a writ of possession order, the order will be submitted to the sheriff's office for a final attempt to vacate the tenants from the premises.
- 14 consecutive days after a money judgement is obtained, a process of garnishment (with fee) may be filed to collect on the money. You must have current address on the defendant and current garnishee information/