Eviction papers in Maine: free help

Your deadline

Go to the District Court on the date and at the time printed on your Summons (form CV-034). That is the return day: the case is ready for trial that day, and you can ask for mediation there. You do not have to file anything in writing to defend yourself at the hearing, with two exceptions. If you claim that you own the property (or that someone else owns it and lets you live there), you must file a written answer saying so with the court, at the address on the summons, before the date and time on the summons. You must also give a copy to the landlord. And Maine law says a tenant who wants a recorded hearing must file a written answer listing all known defenses on or before the return day; file it before the hearing time to be safe. If the summons says the hearing is by video or phone, it tells you how to join; if it does not, go in person. The court cannot hear a counterclaim (your own claim against the landlord) in an eviction.

If you do not answer or appear

If you do not appear at the court at the date and time on your summons, the court can enter a default judgment without you, giving the landlord possession of your home.

Source: Form CV-034 (Rev. 06/14); M.R. Civ. P. 80D(b)(5); 14 M.R.S. 6004(2)(B)

Cost to answer

No court fee is listed for a tenant to appear or to file a written answer in an eviction. The court's fee schedule charges the $100 eviction fee to the landlord who starts the case, and it includes mediation. A tenant cannot file a counterclaim in an eviction, so no counterclaim fee arises. Appealing to the Superior Court costs $175 unless the court waives it (form CV-067).

Source: Administrative Order JB-05-26 (A. 3-26), effective March 9, 2026, Sec. I(A)(3)(m) and note 12, (5)(h), (6)(a); M.R. Civ. P. 80D(h)

What your papers are called

Summons (Forcible Entry and Detainer), form CV-034, served by a sheriff with the landlord's Complaint for Residential Forcible Entry and Detainer (CV-007), the court's Residential Forcible Entry and Detainer (Eviction) Information Sheet and Mediation Request (CV-256) and a Notice Regarding Electronic Service. The summons gives the court date and time. Maine District Court, in the division where the rental property is located (forcible entry and detainer, FED).

Free help

• No statewide answer formMaine has no court form for a tenant's answer in an eviction. The Judicial Branch forms list (https://mjbportal.courts.maine.gov/CourtForms/FormsLists/Index) was searched on 2026-10-28: its FED forms are the landlord's complaint (CV-007), the information sheet (CV-256), the affidavit of service (CV-204), the notice of appeal (CV-206) and the landlord filing packet (OTH-045); the summons (CV-034) comes from the clerk. Under Rule 80D(e) an ordinary tenant "may appear and defend without filing a responsive pleading"; only a title claim (and, under 14 M.R.S. 6003, a request for a recorded hearing) calls for a written answer, and no form is given for either.
• The court's eviction self-help pageMaine Judicial Branch: Eviction (Forcible Entry Detainer (FED))
• Free legal helpPine Tree Legal Assistance (statewide) · 207-942-8322Legal Services for Maine Elders (age 60 and older) · 1-800-750-5353
• Help in SpanishDerechos del Inquilino: Desalojos (Pine Tree Legal Assistance's own Spanish page on eviction rights in Maine)