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Eviction Process in Utah


If you are being evicted in the state of Utah, you may not know how to proceed.  Learning about the eviction process in Utah can help you understand your rights and options under the law.  After reading this guide, you will understand the steps involved in the eviction process in Utah and how long each step will take.

Getting Notice
 Your landlord cannot begin the eviction process in Utah courts until you are served with proper legal notice.  How much notice your landlord is required to give you depends on why you are being evicted.

If you have been late in paying rent (the most common reason for evictions), your landlord will give you a three-day notice.  This notice requires that you pay all past due rent and reasonable late charges within the three day time period, or face the eviction process in Utah courts.  If you do pay the rent within three days, your landlord must accept it and your tenancy will be reinstated.

For breaches to your lease, your landlord must also give you three days' notice before filing a lawsuit.  In most cases, the landlord must allow you to cure the breach, but if you have been selling drugs, violating building codes, or damaging the property, the landlord may simply ask you to leave within 3 days or face eviction.

Court Filings and Hearings
 If you fail to respond to the notice appropriately in the three-day notice period, your landlord may begin the eviction process in Utah courts by filing a complaint.  You will be served with a copy of the complaint, which details why your landlord is evicting you, as well as a copy of a court summons that notifies you of your right to answer the complaint within three days.

You are not required to answer the complaint, but if you do not file an answer within three days, your landlord will win the eviction lawsuit automatically and the eviction process in Utah will move forward.  If you do answer the complaint, you will be given a hearing by a judge.

You may be able to fight the eviction lawsuit successfully if your landlord has acted improperly by failing to serve you with proper notice, discriminating or retaliating against you, or violating the terms of your lease.  Talk to a lawyer with experience with the eviction process in Utah to find out your full range of legal rights and options if you have been served with a complaint.

Removal

If your landlord wins the eviction lawsuit, you will be ordered by the judge to vacate the premises by a certain date.  If you fail to vacate by the date specified in the court order, you could be liable for hefty monetary damages to your landlord and could face forcible removal by the sheriff.

Even at the latest stages of the eviction process in Utah, your landlord is never allowed to change your locks, shut off your utilities, or otherwise threaten or intimidate you into leaving your home.  Only the sheriff can perform a forcible eviction.

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