Tenants filing Answers/Affidavits for eviction notices in Las Vegas can file online from www.lacsn.org/efile by choosing ''SUMMARY EVICTION: Tenant's Answer.'' For eviction prevention tips, click here. For a list of current rental assistance programs, click here.

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Home » Self-Help » Evictions & Housing » Evictions » Information For Landlords » Filing A Summary Eviction

Filing A Summary Eviction

Learn the six basic steps to filing a "summary" eviction case, along with tips for correctly serving the tenant and providing the required documents to the court.

CAUTION!  Unless your tenant has surrendered or abandoned possession of the rental property, you must file an eviction case in order to remove the tenant!  (NRS 118A.480.)  If you lock the tenant out of the property, use force or threats to remove the tenant, or terminate the tenant's utilities or services, you could be sued by the tenant and punished by the court.

Step 1:  Choose the correct eviction notice or notices
Step 2:  Serve the first eviction notice on the tenant
Step 3:  Serve the second eviction notice on the tenant, if necessary
Step 4:  File a complaint and supporting documents with the justice court
Step 5:  Attend a hearing, if necessary
Step 6:  Make arrangements with the constable to remove the tenant.

Each of the six steps is discussed below.

Click on one of the following flowcharts to see how the summary eviction process works for evictions for nonpayment of rent and for evictions for reasons other than nonpayment of rent:

Flowchart - Summary Eviction for Nonpayment
Flowchart - Summary Eviction Other Than Nonpayment


Step 1:

Choose The Correct Eviction Notice Or Notices

All summary evictions start by giving the tenant a notice.  The type of notice the landlord gives depends on the grounds the landlord has to evict the tenant.  There are summary eviction notices for:

Click the above links for forms and more information or visit Eviction & Housing Forms.

Step 2:

Serve The First Eviction Notice On The Tenant

If the landlord wants to evict the tenant for nonpayment of rent, the landlord must issue only one notice to the tenant.  (If the tenant does not comply with that notice by either paying rent or moving, the landlord will skip to Step 4 below.)

If the landlord wants to evict the tenant for any reason other than nonpayment of rent, the landlord must issue two eviction notices on the tenant:

  • The first notice states the grounds for the eviction (for example, lease violation or nuisance).  If the tenant does not comply with that notice,
  • The second notice (a Five-Day Notice to Quit for Unlawful Detainer) tells the tenant to leave the rental property.  It also informs the tenant of the tenant's right to contest the eviction by filing with the court.

All eviction notices must be "served" (delivered to the tenant) by a constable, sheriff, licensed process server, or agent of an attorney licensed in Nevada, in one of the three following ways in compliance with NRS 40.280:

  • Serving the tenant personally.  (NRS 40.280(1)(a).)
  • If the tenant is not at the rental property, leaving a copy with a person "of suitable age and discretion" (at least fourteen years old) AND mailing a copy to the tenant at the address of the rental property.  (NRS 40.280(1)(b).)
  • If no person of suitable age or discretion can be found at the rental property, posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on the rental property AND mailing a copy to the tenant at the address of the rental property.  (NRS 40.280(1)(c).)

The Nevada statute that governs service of eviction notices (NRS 40.280) allows service of a notice by method number 2 above (leaving the notice with a person of suitable age at the rental property and mailing a copy to the tenant) only if the tenant "is absent from his place of residence."  Method number 3 above (posting the notice on the rental property and mailing a copy to the tenant) is only permitted when "a person of suitable age or discretion cannot be found" at the rental property.  Personal service of the notice to the tenant by method number 1 above is always permitted.

Before the court can issue a summary eviction order, the landlord must file the following proofs of service with the court:

  • A statement, signed by the person who served the notice, stating the date and manner of service. The statement must also include the number of the badge or license number of the constable, sheriff, or private process server. (NRS 40.280(5)(a)(1).)
  • If the notice was served by an agent of an attorney licensed in Nevada, the statement must also include a declaration signed by the attorney with the attorney's bar number, stating that the attorney was retained by the landlord for an eviction pursuant to NRS 40.230 to 40.420, that the attorney reviewed the date and manner of service by the agent, and that the attorney believes to the best of his or her knowledge that the service complies with the requirements of the law.(NRS 40.280(5)(a)(1)(II-III).)

    If you want the constable in your township to prepare and serve the eviction notices for you, contact your local constable's office to make arrangements and obtain fee information.  Click to visit Constables & Sheriffs.

 

Step 3:

Serve The Second Eviction Notice On The Tenant, If Necessary

If the landlord is evicting for anything other than nonpayment of rent (nuisance or lease violation, for example), the landlord must issue a second eviction notice on the tenant (a Five-Day Notice to Quit for Unlawful Detainer) should the tenant fails to comply with the first notice (for example, by remedying the lease violation or moving).

For information on how to serve an eviction notice, read Step 2 above.

For forms and more information, click to visit Types of Eviction Notices or Eviction & Housing Forms.

Step 4:

File A Complaint And Supporting Documents With The Justice Court

If the tenant did not comply with the Seven-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit or the Five-Day Notice to Quit for Unlawful Detainer, the landlord can file documents with the justice court for the township where the rental property is located to request an eviction order.

TIP!  In the Las Vegas Justice Court, you cannot file the Complaint for Summary Eviction until the time for the tenant to file an affidavit/answer has expired.  (JCRLV 34(f)(2)(A).)  In other words, if you served a Seven-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit, you cannot file the complaint until the eighth judicial day (counting only business days) following the day of service.  (NRS 40.253(1)(a).)  If you served a Five-Day Notice to Quit for Unlawful Detainer, you cannot file for five full business days after the day of service.  (NRS 40.254(1).)  In other justice courts, you may be able to file the complaint once the tenant has filed an affidavit/answer, even if the notice period has not expired.

To start a summary eviction case, the landlord must file all of the following (per NRS 40.253(5), NRS 40.280(3), and JCRLV 34(f).):

1.  A completed Complaint for Summary Eviction.

Click here and select the "Clark County Summary Eviction Complaint" interview for an automated forms interview that will fill out the form after you answer a series of questions. At the end of the interview, you will have to print your form, sign it, and file it. If you prefer to fill out the form by hand, the form is available, free of charge, at the Civil Law Self-Help Center, or you can link the form by clicking underneath the form's title below: 

COMPLAINT FOR SUMMARY EVICTION FOR NONPAYMENT OF RENT
Pdf Fillable

COMPLAINT FOR SUMMARY EVICTION (ALL OTHER)
Pdf Fillable

CAUTION!  You MUST search the court's records to see whether the tenant filed an affidavit/answer in response to your eviction notices. If so, you'll use the case number the court assigned to the tenant when you prepare your complaint. If you don't use this case number, some courts will require you to re-file your complaint and pay an additional filing fee! To check whether the tenant filed, click to visit Look Up My Case.

2.  All eviction notices served on the tenant.

TIP!  When you prepare your complaint, make sure your name and the tenant's name and address are listed in your complaint exactly as they appear on the eviction notices you served.

3.  An original declaration of service and, when required, an attorney's declaration.

4. The written rental or lease agreement, if there is one.

5. A completed Civil Court Cover Sheet if you are filing in a justice court other than Las Vegas (and only if the tenant has not already filed an affidavit/answer).

This form is available for free at the Self-Help Center, or you can download it on your computer by clicking one of the formats underneath the form's title below:

CIVIL COURT COVER SHEET 
Pdf Fillable 

In the Las Vegas Justice court, the landlord's complaint and supporting documents must be filed electronically.  Click to visit the Las Vegas Justice Court website for more information.  In any other justice courts in Clark County, the landlord will need to take one original and one copy of all documents to the appropriate justice court.  All justice courts will charge the landlord a $71 fee to file the complaint.  Click to visit Basics of Court Forms and Filing for more information or Justice Courts for court location and contact information.

CAUTION!  The Las Vegas Justice Court requires that you file the complaint within thirty days after the eviction notice expires or the notice will be deemed expired and you will have to serve a new notice.  (JCRLV 34(e).)  Other justice courts in Clark County may have similar time limitations, so check with the applicable justice court if you have questions.  For contact information, click to visit Justice Courts.


Step 5:

Attend A Hearing, If Necessary

If the tenant filed an affidavit/answer with the court to contest the eviction (click to visit Responding to an Eviction Notice to learn more), the court will schedule a hearing when the landlord files the Complaint for Summary Eviction, regardless of the information in the tenant's affidavit/answer.  (NRS 40.253(6).)

In the Las Vegas Justice Court, the court will mail a notice of hearing to the landlord and the tenant.   (JCRLV 34(b)(1).)  Other justice courts in Clark County may have different procedures for notifying the parties, so check with the applicable justice court if you have questions.  Click to visit Justice Courts for contact information.

At the hearing, the judge will give both parties a brief opportunity to present the facts of their case.  Because summary eviction is intended for cases where the landlord’s right to possession is clear, the court must dismiss the case if it decides there is a genuine dispute over some material fact.  Click to visit What to Expect at an Eviction Hearing for more information.

If the tenant did not file an affidavit/answer with the court to contest the eviction, the court may issue an order directing the sheriff or constable to remove the tenant within twenty-four hours.  (NRS 40.253(5)(a).)

After the court issues a summary eviction order, the tenant could ask the court to "stay" (pause or delay) the eviction or could appeal to the district court.  For more information, click to read Responding to an Order for Eviction.

Step 6:

Make Arrangements With The Constable To Remove The Tenant

If the court orders a summary eviction, the landlord must make arrangements to serve the eviction order and remove the tenant with the constable for the township where the property is located.  The constables' procedures and fees for this service might vary, so contact the appropriate constable's office and make arrangements in advance.  Click to visit Constables & Sheriffs for contact information.

The landlord might also need to prepare instructions to the constable with the details of the eviction.   For an instruction form for the Las Vegas Constable, the North Las Vegas Constable, or the Henderson Constable, click on one of the listed formats underneath the appropriate form's title below:

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE CONSTABLE – EVICTIONS (LAS VEGAS)
Pdf Fillable

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE CONSTABLE – EVICTIONS (NORTH LAS VEGAS)
Pdf Fillable

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE CONSTABLE – EVICTIONS (HENDERSON)
Pdf Nonfillable

For instruction forms for constables in other townships in Clark County, visit that constable's website or contact that constable's office directly.  Click to visit Constables & Sheriffs for contact information.