EVICTION HELP
Eviction papers in Ohio: free help
Free, and based on the court's and the legislature's own sources. No account, no payment.
Your deadline
Go to the eviction hearing on the date and at the time printed on your summons, even if you plan to move or have filed papers. Ohio law lets you raise any defense at that hearing without a written answer, but some courts give you an Answer form, and filing one does not replace going to court. If the complaint also asks for money (back rent or damages, often called the 'second cause'), you must also file a written answer with the clerk, and send a copy to the landlord or the landlord's lawyer, within 28 days after service was complete.
The rule: twenty-eight days from the date service is deemed complete
The rule's own words: “Answer day for any other claims filed with the claim for possession shall be twenty-eight days from the date service is deemed complete under this section.”
Source: R.C. 1923.06(H)(2); R.C. 1.14; Civ.R. 6(A); Civ.R. 12(A)(1)
If you do not answer or appear
If you do not go to the hearing, the court holds it without you and can order you to move out. If the landlord also asks for money and you do not file a written answer by the answer day, the landlord can ask the court for a default judgment for the money.
Source: R.C. 1923.07; Civ.R. 55(A)
Cost to answer
It depends on your court. Each Ohio municipal court sets its own fees by local rule. Cleveland Housing Court's Answer form says the person filing an answer 'usually has to pay a fee'. Franklin County Municipal Court lists $20 for a counterclaim. If you cannot afford a fee, you can ask the court to waive it with a poverty affidavit (Supreme Court of Ohio Form 20).
What your papers are called
A summons and a complaint in forcible entry and detainer (an eviction). The summons must say: 'A complaint to evict you has been filed with this court.' If the complaint also asks for money, it is often called a 'second cause'. Municipal court or county court where the rental is (a court of common pleas may also hear it). In Cleveland and Toledo the municipal court's housing division hears evictions.
Free help
- No statewide answer formOhio has no statewide tenant answer form. The Supreme Court of Ohio's all-forms page, read on 2026-10-05, lists no eviction, landlord or tenant forms, and each court uses its own. Two widely used options were opened on 2026-10-05, and both are listed in answer_form_alternatives. (1) Ohio Legal Help, the statewide legal information site built with the Supreme Court of Ohio and Ohio's legal aid groups, publishes templates for the money claim: 'Answer: Second cause eviction' and 'Answer and counterclaim: Second cause eviction'. (2) The Cleveland Municipal Court Housing Division publishes its own 'Answer' and 'Answer and Counterclaim' forms (both Revised 9/10/2026) for cases in that court.
- The court's eviction self-help pageSupreme Court of Ohio: Are You Facing Eviction?
- Free legal helpOhio Legal Help: Find your legal aid (by county)
- Free lawyer programs for tenantsCleveland: Right to Counsel - Cleveland (RTC-C), Legal Aid Society of Cleveland with United WayWho qualifies: Tenants with an eviction case in Cleveland Municipal Court who have at least one child and income at or below the federal poverty guidelines. Call 216.861.5835 or apply online at freeevictionhelp.org.Akron: Right to Counsel in Evictions, Akron RTC Pilot Project, Community Legal AidWho qualifies: Akron residents who are at least seven days away from facing eviction and at 100% of the poverty line, and who either have children living in the home or are 60 or older with a disability. Apply online from the page or call (866) 584-2350.Columbus: Right to counsel in eviction court, Legal Aid of Southeast and Central Ohio (LASCO)Who qualifies: Columbus residents facing eviction whose income is below the federal poverty line and who have a child in the home. Apply at https://www.lasco.org/apply or call 1-888-246-4420.Toledo: Right to Counsel, Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO), under Toledo Ordinance 418-21Who qualifies: Toledo residents at or below 200% of the poverty line who are facing an eviction. Apply at https://www.legalaidline.org/apply-for-legal-help/ or call (419) 724-0460 (Lucas County).
- Help in SpanishDesalojos en Ohio (Ohio Legal Help, Spanish)Cómo encontrar un abogado (Ohio Legal Help, Spanish)
Are you the landlord?
A company landlord, such as an LLC or corporation, generally needs a lawyer to file an eviction in this state.
A company landlord (corporation, LLC, trust or other entity) must have a licensed lawyer to file and appear in an Ohio eviction. The Supreme Court of Ohio calls this 'the ordinary rule'. Its only carve-out lets a company officer present a claim in small claims court, and small claims cannot hear evictions. Two large courts say the same in their own papers. Cleveland Housing Court requires that 'Any business entity that appears before the Court must be represented by counsel.' The Franklin County Municipal Court clerk says only the deeded owner may file without a lawyer, and a property management company's filing must be signed by a lawyer. Local rules can add more; this is the statewide floor.
Hello Court never helps with a lockout, removing a tenant's belongings, or shutting off utilities. Only a court order and the officer it names can remove a tenant.
If you want more, Hello Court can help you organize your case and prepare your court forms for a one-time fee. Everything above stays free.
Start a caseSources read on 2026-10-05.