Did you know that if an unlawful detainer proceeding (an eviction) is filed against you in California, that the records are sealed from public access from the date that the summons and complaint is filed with the Clerk of Court?
Once filed with the court, the Clerk of Court will mail a letter to you informing you about the lawsuit and that the records are sealed for 60-days from public access from the date that the complaint was filed.
But, what happens after 60-days? Then records of the eviction proceeding against you become public and stays public even if you settle the case with your landlord or if you, the tenant, win the case against your landlord and get to stay in the rental residence. Evidence of the unlawful detainer filing against you can blacklist you as a tenant even if you won the case and remain as a negative mark on your credit report for 7-years!
However, this just changed! The following organizations,Tenants Together, Western Center on Law & Poverty, and California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, have advocated for a change to Cal. Civil Code section 1161.2 and to enact 1167.1, both of which allow an eviction proceeding to remain sealed against public view if the case is dismissed or settled or the tenant wins the case after 60-days has elapsed.
The new Cal. Civil Code section 1167.1 prevents an eviction record from being publicly accessible if, within the first 60-days of filing, a proof of service of the summons has not been filed with the court. When a lawsuit is filed against you, the landlord must "serve" you with notice of the eviction proceeding. California has very strict rules about how to notify the tenant. Moreover, once the tenant is served with the summons and complaint (e.g. the eviction proceeding), the landlord or his or her attorney must file a "Proof of Service" which testifies that you were properly notified about the lawsuit and by whom.
Cal. Civil Code section 1167.1 allows the Court to dismiss the eviction proceeding against you if no Proof of Service of the Summons was filed with the court within 60-days after the Summons was filed with the Clerk of Court.
This is landmark legislation that was just enacted into law by Governor Jerry Brown under Assembly Bill 2819. This is a major "win" for tenants and is the right thing for the state to do.
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