questions & answers

Question: I was evicted from my apartment on November 3rd, 2016. I received a five day notice and stupidly and irresponsibly believed my boyfriend when he told me that he went to the office and paid it. However I never received a Court summons by a servitor and never received any certified mail. I went to the office to get copies of the paperwork and all she gave me was a copy of the eviction action and the writ of restitution. Can they evict me without notifying me of the court date?

Answer: I always recommend consulting the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act found here: https://housing.az.gov/sites/default/files/documents/files/AZ%20Residential%20Landlord%20and%20Tenant%20Act%20-%20Revised%20July%203%202015.pdf The short answer is no. They are required to give you notice of any eviction action (a summons) with a return court date on it so that you can appear. They will likely claim they posted that on the door. You can go to the court and ask the clerk for a copy of the affidavit of service so you can see how they claim they served you. If they did not properly serve you, you can ask to set aside the default judgment against you. Please note that I am providing general information based on the very limited information available to me. I am unable to provide you with legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created hereby.