- Answer
- The tenant’s written response to the complaint.
- Complaint / petition
- The document that starts the court case and says why the landlord wants possession.
- Cure
- Fixing the problem (paying the rent or stopping the violation) within the notice period.
- Default judgment
- A judgment entered because one side did not respond or appear.
- Holdover
- A tenant who stays after the lease or tenancy has ended.
- Just cause / good cause
- A reason the law requires before a landlord may end a tenancy.
- Notice to quit
- A written notice telling the tenant to leave by a certain date.
- Periodic tenancy
- A tenancy that renews automatically, such as month-to-month.
- Plaintiff / defendant
- The person who files the case (landlord) / the person it is filed against (tenant).
- Pro se
- Representing yourself without a lawyer.
- Proof of service
- A signed statement describing how and when a document was delivered.
- Retaliation
- An eviction or rent increase in response to a tenant exercising legal rights.
- Self-help eviction
- Forcing a tenant out without a court order (lockout, removing belongings, cutting utilities) — illegal in almost every state.
- Summons
- The court paper that tells the tenant about the case and when to respond.
- Writ / warrant of possession
- The court order the sheriff or marshal uses to return the property to the landlord.
