Month: April 2014

---

Yes, a landlord or tenant can handle some Florida eviction cases without an attorney. Florida law does not require a lawyer in every eviction proceeding. But an eviction still involves specific notice requirements, court filings, service of process, deadlines, and rules governing defenses and possession. A mistake at any of those stages can affect the outcome of the case.

For landlords, the process generally begins with the legally required notice and can proceed to a county court action if the tenant does not leave. For tenants, receiving an eviction lawsuit creates deadlines for responding and, in some cases, requirements for paying disputed rent into the court registry.

The issue matters in Broward County, where there were 16,666 eviction filings in 2025 and 7,955 more during the first six months of 2026.

So when is an eviction simple enough to handle on your own, and when does the situation call for legal assistance? The answer usually depends on the reason for the eviction, the lease, the notice, and whether the other side contests the case.

---

Can You Handle an Eviction Without an Attorney?

Yes.

Florida does not require every landlord or tenant to hire an attorney for an eviction. Broward County provides self service information and forms for people handling certain eviction matters themselves. The Clerk also explains that its deputy clerks can provide procedural information, but cannot prepare legal forms or give legal advice.

The complexity of the case matters.

A straightforward dispute involving unpaid rent may be different from a case involving:

• A disputed lease violation.
• Questions about whether the required notice was valid.
• A commercial lease.
• A disagreement about the amount of rent actually owed.
• A claim that the landlord failed to maintain the property.
• A retaliation defense.
• A security deposit dispute.
• A lease renewal or termination dispute.
• A claim for damages in addition to possession.

An eviction can also become more complicated when the parties disagree about basic facts.

That is where legal advice may become useful.

---

Why Does the Eviction Process Matter?

Florida provides a summary procedure for eviction cases. The purpose is to provide a more direct procedure for resolving possession disputes.

“Summary” does not mean informal.

Florida law still requires the landlord to establish the legal basis for possession and follow the applicable requirements. The Broward County Clerk describes the basic local process as:

1. Issue the required notice.
2. Complete and file the required forms.
3. Properly serve the tenant.
4. Obtain a judgment and, when appropriate, a writ of possession.

Each stage can raise separate issues.

A defective notice can create a problem before the case even reaches a judge.

A service problem can affect whether the case can proceed.

A tenant who fails to respond properly can lose important defenses.

A landlord who tries to bypass the court process can create a different legal problem altogether.

Eviction law has very little patience for the idea that everyone can simply improvise.

---

What Notice Does a Landlord Have to Give?

The required notice depends on the reason for ending the tenancy.

For example, Florida law provides specific procedures for nonpayment of rent and for certain lease violations. The notice requirements are contained in section 83.56 of the Florida Statutes and are not simply optional language that the parties can rewrite in a lease.

For nonpayment cases, the applicable notice period and calculation depend on the tenancy and the circumstances. Florida’s statutory framework also specifies how certain periods are calculated.

For other violations, the landlord may need to give the tenant an opportunity to correct the problem when the law provides a cure period.

This distinction matters because an eviction notice is not interchangeable with every other type of demand letter.

The reason for the termination affects what the landlord may need to do next.

A notice can become a legal issue in itself

Consider a tenant who receives a notice claiming that rent was not paid.

The tenant might disagree about:

• Whether the rent was actually due.
• How much was owed.
• Whether payment was made.
• Whether the notice was properly served.
• Whether the notice contained the required information.
• Whether the landlord complied with the applicable statutory requirements.

Those questions can affect what happens after the notice.

The notice is therefore more than a warning. It can become part of the legal record.

---

What Happens After the Notice?

If the tenant does not leave and the landlord has the legal basis to seek possession, the landlord can file an action for possession.

Florida Statute §83.59 governs actions to recover possession. The landlord must proceed through the court rather than simply taking possession personally.

Broward County’s Clerk describes the next stages as filing the required documents and serving the tenant. The tenant then has to follow the instructions in the summons and respond within the applicable time.

This is one reason an eviction should not be treated like an ordinary argument between a landlord and tenant.

Once a lawsuit has been filed, deadlines and procedural rules become part of the dispute.

---

What Can a Tenant Do After Receiving an Eviction Lawsuit?

A tenant is not automatically removed simply because a landlord files an eviction case.

Florida law permits tenants to raise certain legal and equitable defenses. Depending on the circumstances, those defenses can involve alleged landlord noncompliance, defective notices, retaliation, payment disputes, or other issues recognized by law.

But there is an important procedural requirement that tenants should understand.

When a tenant raises a defense other than payment in a nonpayment case, section 83.60 generally requires the tenant to pay the accrued rent into the court registry or timely file a motion asking the court to determine the amount that must be deposited.

Failure to comply can result in waiver of defenses other than payment and can allow the landlord to obtain an immediate default judgment for possession.

That is not a minor technicality.

It can change the course of the case.

---

A Broward County case shows why this matters

In Muscella v. Johnson, a 2024 Fourth District Court of Appeal decision arising from Broward County, the tenants did not pay the rent into the court registry or timely move to determine the amount as required by section 83.60(2).

The Fourth DCA reversed the county court and explained that, under the circumstances, the landlord was entitled to the writ of possession.

The court stated that when the statutory requirement is not met, the landlord can be entitled to possession without another hearing.

That case illustrates the practical importance of understanding procedural requirements.

---

But the Same Rules Can Protect a Tenant Who Responds Properly

A different Broward County case demonstrates the other side.

In Kaufman v. High Seas, LLC, the landlord sought possession for alleged nonpayment of rent. The tenant disputed the landlord’s allegations, raised defenses, and timely filed a motion asking the court to determine the amount of rent that should be deposited into the court registry.

The trial court entered an eviction judgment without resolving that motion.

The Fourth DCA reversed and remanded, holding that the trial court needed to address the pending motion before entering the eviction judgment.

The case is useful because it shows why neither side should assume that an eviction case is automatic.

The landlord had procedural requirements.

The tenant had procedural requirements.

And the court had to apply the statute to what actually happened in the case.

---

Landlord vs. Tenant: What Is at Stake?

The obligations are different depending on which side of the dispute you are on.

Issue	Landlord	Tenant
Before filing	Must establish the basis for termination and provide the required notice	Should understand what the notice alleges and what deadline applies
Lease	Must establish the contractual or statutory basis for possession	May dispute the interpretation or enforcement of the lease
Court filing	Must file the appropriate action and supporting documents	Must respond according to the summons and applicable rules
Rent dispute	May seek possession and, where legally available, damages	May have court registry requirements when raising certain defenses
Defenses	Must respond to defenses raised by the tenant	May raise legal or equitable defenses recognized by Florida law
Possession	Cannot simply bypass the court process	Has statutory protections against certain forms of self help
After judgment	May obtain a writ of possession through the court	Must comply with a valid writ while retaining whatever legal remedies remain available

The table is not a substitute for the statute or legal advice. It simply illustrates why an eviction case involves obligations on both sides.

---

Can a Landlord Change the Locks Instead?

No.

For residential properties covered by Florida’s landlord tenant law, section 83.67 prohibits a landlord from preventing a tenant from obtaining reasonable access to the dwelling, including by changing the locks or using a bootlock.

The statute also prohibits a landlord from interrupting utility services as a way of dealing with the tenancy.

That means a landlord generally cannot avoid the eviction process by deciding to remove the tenant personally.

The lawful process is different.

After a judgment in the landlord’s favor, Florida law provides for a writ of possession issued to the sheriff. The sheriff then executes the writ after the statutory notice period. Section 83.62 currently provides for 24 hours’ notice posted on the premises before the sheriff puts the landlord in possession.

In other words:

A court judgment and writ of possession are not the same thing as a landlord changing the locks on their own.

That distinction matters.

---

What If the Dispute Is About More Than Rent?

Not every landlord tenant dispute is really a simple nonpayment eviction.

The underlying disagreement might involve:

• A commercial lease.
• An assignment or sublease.
• A disputed renewal option.
• Property damage.
• A security deposit.
• Alleged nuisance.
• A claim of constructive eviction.
• Abandonment of personal property.
• Lease provisions concerning rent increases.
• Claims for damages in addition to possession.

Some of these matters may arise alongside an eviction. Others may require separate legal analysis.

A recent Fourth DCA case illustrates the point.

In Destiny Fulfilled Outreach Ministries v. Investments SWK, the dispute involved a commercial tenancy and disagreement over the nature and duration of the parties’ lease arrangement. The Fourth DCA affirmed the eviction judgment after the lower court determined that the parties had not established the claimed lease term.

The lesson is not that every commercial eviction looks like that case.

It is that the right to possession can depend on questions about the lease itself.

---

What About Attorney’s Fees?

Attorney’s fees can also become part of an eviction dispute when a statute, lease, or other applicable legal authority permits an award.

A 2025 Fourth DCA case arising from Broward County illustrates that even a fee award following an eviction judgment can create a separate appellate issue.

In Gordon v. Pinoargotty, the Fourth DCA reversed an attorney’s fee award because the trial court had not made the required findings concerning reasonable hours and the reasonable hourly rate. The underlying eviction judgment was not what the appeal addressed.

This is another reason to avoid thinking of an eviction as simply:

notice → tenant leaves → finished.

Depending on the case, possession, rent, damages, attorney’s fees, and other issues can all require separate attention.

---

When Does an Eviction Become More Complicated?

There is no single point at which every eviction suddenly requires an attorney.

Some situations, however, deserve closer attention.

Legal advice may be particularly useful when:

• The tenant disputes the facts.
• The landlord is unsure which notice applies.
• The tenant claims the notice was defective.
• There are questions about rent payments or the amount owed.
• The lease contains complicated provisions.
• The property is commercial.
• There are counterclaims or substantial damages.
• A tenant alleges retaliation.
• The case involves habitability or property condition issues.
• The landlord and tenant disagree about whether the lease has ended.
• A prior eviction case or judgment is involved.
• A party has received court papers and is unsure how to respond.

The more issues that exist beyond straightforward possession, the less useful a generic eviction form becomes.

---

What About Coral Springs and Broward County?

For someone in Coral Springs, an eviction case does not take place in a legal vacuum.

Coral Springs is part of Broward County and the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, so local filing and court procedures matter in addition to the statewide landlord tenant statutes.

The Broward County Clerk’s current eviction information identifies the required sequence of notice, filing, service, judgment, and writ of possession. It also directs filers to the applicable Seventeenth Judicial Circuit administrative order for the location where county civil actions are filed.

Broward’s numbers show why this is not an obscure area of law.

The county recorded:

• 15,588 eviction filings in 2019
• 17,657 in 2022
• 18,670 in 2023
• 18,335 in 2024
• 16,666 in 2025

The 2023 figure was the highest in that series. The 2025 total represented a decline from the prior year, but still amounted to more than 16,000 filings.

During the first six months of 2026, Broward recorded 7,955 filings, including 1,562 in January and 1,426 in June.

There is no reliable public source in the data reviewed here that isolates eviction filings specifically for Coral Springs. It is therefore more accurate to use Broward County as the local statistical measure rather than assigning a countywide number to Coral Springs.

---

What If You Cannot Afford an Attorney?

A private attorney is not the only possible source of help.

The Legal Aid Service of Broward County provides civil legal assistance to eligible low income Broward residents and specifically identifies landlord tenant matters and eviction assistance among its housing services. Eligibility requirements apply.

Broward County also provides self service information for people handling certain eviction matters without counsel.

That does not mean every case is appropriate for self representation.

It does mean that someone facing an eviction should not assume the only choices are hiring a private lawyer immediately or doing nothing.

---

What Should You Do If You Receive an Eviction Notice?

Start by determining exactly what you received.

An eviction notice is different from an eviction lawsuit.

If you have received only a notice from the landlord, review the reason stated and the deadline carefully.

If you have received a court summons or complaint, the situation is more urgent because the court’s procedural deadlines now matter.

Keep copies of:

• The lease.
• The eviction notice.
• Proof of rent payments.
• Communications with the landlord.
• Repair requests.
• Photographs or videos of relevant property conditions.
• Court documents.
• Receipts and other supporting records.

Do not assume that an unanswered court document will simply disappear.

It will not.

---

What Should a Landlord Do Before Filing?

A landlord should similarly organize the underlying record before beginning an eviction case.

That can include:

• The signed lease.
• Payment records.
• The applicable notice.
• Proof of delivery or service.
• Communications with the tenant.
• Records concerning alleged lease violations.
• Property inspection records.
• Photographs where relevant.
• Documentation supporting any claimed damages.

The landlord should also make sure that the legal basis for possession matches the notice and the facts.

An eviction is not improved by filing quickly with the wrong theory.

---

The Bigger Point: Eviction Is a Process, Not a Threat

The old idea that an eviction is simply a landlord versus tenant argument misses what actually happens in court.

• Florida law creates a process.
• The landlord has to establish a basis for possession.
• The tenant may have defenses.
• Both sides have procedural obligations.
• The court applies the governing law.
• And if the landlord ultimately obtains judgment, possession is transferred through the statutory process rather than by private force.

The recent Broward cases make that clear from opposite directions.

In Muscella, the tenants’ failure to comply with the rent registry requirement had immediate consequences.

In Kaufman, the tenant’s timely motion to determine rent meant that the trial court could not simply enter the eviction judgment without addressing the pending issue.

Neither case establishes that every landlord needs an attorney or that every tenant will successfully defend an eviction.

They demonstrate something more practical:

The details matter.

---

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I evict a tenant without an attorney in Florida?

• Mostly. Florida does not require every landlord to hire an attorney for an eviction. However, the landlord must still comply with the applicable statutes, court rules, notice requirements, filing requirements, and service requirements.

Could a tenant fight an eviction without an attorney?

• Yes. Tenants can represent themselves and may raise defenses permitted by Florida law. But some defenses trigger specific procedural requirements, including requirements concerning rent paid into the court registry.

Can my landlord change the locks instead of evicting me?

• For residential tenancies governed by Florida’s landlord tenant law, a landlord generally may not prevent a tenant from accessing the dwelling by changing the locks or using similar devices. Florida law also prohibits certain utility shutoffs used to interfere with a tenancy.

How long does an eviction take in Florida?

• There is no single answer. Timing depends on the type of case, the notice, whether the tenant responds, whether defenses are raised, court scheduling, service, and other circumstances. Florida uses a summary procedure for eviction cases, but summary does not mean automatic.

What happens after a landlord wins an eviction?

• After a judgment for the landlord, the clerk issues a writ of possession to the sheriff. Florida law provides for 24 hours’ notice to be posted before the sheriff puts the landlord in possession.

Can a tenant raise defenses to an eviction?

• Yes. Florida law permits certain legal and equitable defenses. In nonpayment cases, however, a tenant raising defenses other than payment generally must comply with the rent registry requirements in section 83.60.

Does an eviction case always involve unpaid rent?

• No. Eviction disputes can involve alleged lease violations, expiration or termination of a tenancy, possession disputes, and other issues. Commercial cases can also involve questions about lease terms and renewal rights.

Where are eviction cases handled in Broward County?

• Eviction matters are handled through the county civil system within the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit. The Broward County Clerk provides current filing information and directs filers to the applicable administrative order concerning filing locations.

Is there legal help for tenants in Broward County who cannot afford a lawyer?

• Legal Aid Service of Broward County provides civil legal services to eligible low income residents and offers housing and eviction assistance subject to its eligibility requirements.

---

Eviction and Landlord Tenant Disputes in Coral Springs

An eviction can look simple from the outside.

A landlord wants the property back. A tenant wants to remain there. A notice is delivered. A lawsuit may follow.

The actual legal process can be more complicated.

For landlords and tenants in Coral Springs, Broward County, and throughout South Florida, understanding the applicable Florida law is the first step. The next question is whether the particular dispute is straightforward enough to handle without legal assistance or whether the consequences of a procedural mistake make professional advice worthwhile.

Reinfeld & Cabrera represents landlords and tenants in eviction and landlord tenant disputes, including residential and commercial matters, lease disputes, security deposit claims, wrongful or constructive eviction claims, and other related issues.

If you are dealing with an eviction notice, an eviction lawsuit, or a dispute concerning possession of property, the specific documents and facts of the case matter more than a generic checklist ever could.