First of all, you need to state the cause of action in your eviction. The cause of action is generally based on non-payment of rent. But if it’s not, then you have a different kind of evidence in case to layout. We’ll talk about both.
Let’s start off with the premise that you’re evicting a tenant for non-payment of rent. It’s best to have a number of things with you in case the court wants to review them.
So, you’ve filed. And in your petition you probably disclosed:
a) the amount of rent,
b) the amount of the default, in other words, how much is owed in rent,
c) the fact that you delivered a Notice to Vacate.
We’ve talked about a Notice to Vacate before, and hopefully you’ve well-versed it at this point. When you show up to trial, you should take all of that information with you.
Take a copy of your lease. The best way to prove what your agreement is is by showing what the opposing party signed. So, definitely show up with a signed, preferably the original, copy of your lease.
A photocopy is also acceptable, unless there’s some question as to its authenticity. The original is always best.
You should also show up with a copy of your Notice to Vacate. If the only copy that exists is the one you left in the hand of your tenant, or that you posted on the inside of the main entry door, or that you mailed to the tenant, that’s not going to help you if there’s an issue as to whether or not that Notice was effective.
Never send the only copy that you have of a Notice to Vacate to the tenant. Always keep a copy and then take it with you to the trial. I would suggest that you can deliver the original to the tenant, but keep a copy for your records, particularly for trial.
So, have a copy of the Notice to Vacate and be prepared to prove your method of its delivery. For example, your post office receipt.
You should also keep an accurate rent ledger or receipt book as a part of your normal course of business.
Your rent ledger establishes the pattern of payment. If somebody says: “No, I always pay my rent and I always pay it on time,” your ledger can reflect that’s just not the case. If they are trying to convince the court that they did pay rent, their testimony is going to be put into question, if you have a carefully documented payment history in your rent ledger.
If you are in a lawsuit for anything other than rent, let’s say, they have an unauthorized occupant, or they have a pet that violates your agreement, or, perhaps there’s some other breach that causes you to want to evict them, you’re going to need a proof of those things.
You can’t talk about a pet that you think is there. Photographs, video – all of those are good. If they admitted they have got this pet, and they sent you an email, or a text-message, that’s helpful.
If you’re going to supply email or text, don’t just take your phone. Print these digital records out, so that you can hand them to the court. If you have photographs, don’t just have them on your phone. Develop and print them out and take them with you as exhibits that the court might keep.
It’s also helpful if you can put your evidence on a jump drive and take it with you. It could be anything that has to do with non-payment of rent: photographs, video – anything that’s tangible and you can produce.
So, be prepared to display your case. Don’t just do it all from your memory, or think that your oral testimony is going to be good enough.
Make sure that you can show tangible evidence: the Notice to Vacate, the lease, your rent ledger, photographs, invoices, receipts – all those things are helpful. Be prepared to show it all.
Imagine that you are explaining your case to someone who has no idea what eviction is, what a lease is, or any of the facts that you’re planning to present. And if you can lay it out in a way that makes sense, you’re likely to win your case.
