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Working for Fairness

Evictions, also called “Forcible Entry and Detainer Actions” or F.E.D.s, are legal proceedings used by landlords to try to remove tenants from rented property. These procedures differ from Small Claims for money in a few important ways.

First, certain notices must be delivered to the tenant before the landlord can begin an eviction in Court. The notices that need to be served depend on the situation. A landlord may start a Court proceeding for eviction without first serving the required notices on the tenant. Then the Judge will dismiss the landlord’s case at the beginning of the scheduled eviction hearing.

The landlord begins the eviction itself by filing an Original Notice. The Clerk writes in the date and time for hearing on the Original Notice, and it is then served upon the tenant. The tenant must receive the Original Notice 3 or more days before the scheduled hearing. If the Original Notice is not received that much in advance of the hearing, the Judge will reschedule the case.

When the tenant gets the Original Notice, he or she may file an Answer, but does not have to. Showing up at the hearing is enough to avoid default.

If an eviction is based on non-payment of rent, the tenant may wish to file a counterclaim against the landlord. This is not a common practice, but it is allowed in section 562A.24 of the Code of Iowa. The counterclaim must relate to the landlord-tenant relationship in some way. The tenant may be able to show that the landlord owes as much or more to the tenant on the counterclaim than the tenant owes for rent. In that case, the eviction is dismissed.

If a tenant loses an eviction, the Judge will take one of two possible steps. The Judge could direct the Sheriff to remove the tenant from the property. The Judge could rule that the landlord may have the tenant removed by the Sheriff upon the landlord’s request of a “Writ of Possession” from the Clerk of Court. The Judge may give a tenant a short period of time (perhaps two or three days) before permitting the tenant to be removed.
If a tenant disagrees with the Small Claims Judge’s decision, he or she may appeal it to the District Judge. Those procedures are explained in another part of this booklet. (NOTE that the “stay” discussed elswhere becomes very important when an eviction decision is appealed by a tenant.)

Another Iowa Legal Aid booklet has details on the eviction process, and how to defend against evictions. Order a copy of A Guide to Landlord Tenant Law in Iowa from Iowa Legal Aid to read the details. Click here for a publications order form. The booklet may be available in your local public library.

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