Outline of the eviction process in Louisiana

Louisiana is a civil law state and has no landlord-tenant act. The lease itself is governed by the Civil Code’s title on lease, and eviction is a summary proceeding under Title XI of the Code of Civil Procedure (arts. 4701 to 4735): a written notice to vacate, a “rule to show cause” heard as early as the third day after service, a judgment of eviction, and a warrant for possession that can issue 24 hours later. State law provides no right to cure, no pay-and-stay and no just-cause requirement.

The five-day notice to vacate can be waived in the lease, and most form leases do waive it. A tenant can suspend the eviction on appeal only by meeting three conditions within 24 hours of the judgment. The warrant is carried out by the officer of the court that decided the case: the sheriff, a constable or a city marshal. The Legislature’s citator indexes for the 2025 and 2026 regular sessions show no amendment to arts. 4701 to 4735.

1. Grounds

Article 4701 applies whenever the tenant’s right of occupancy has ended “because of the termination of the lease by expiration of its term, action by the lessor, nonpayment of rent, or for any other reason.”

• Nonpayment of rent. If the tenant fails to pay rent when due, the landlord may dissolve the lease and regain possession in the manner provided by law (Civ. Code art. 2704). The Code gives the tenant no grace period and no right to cure; any grace period comes from your lease.
• Breach of the lease. Handled the same way. The rule to show cause must state the grounds (art. 4731(A)), so be specific.
• End of a fixed term. A lease with a fixed term ends when the term expires, “without need of notice” (Civ. Code art. 2720). But if the tenant stays on for one week after the term without a notice to vacate or other opposition from you, the lease is reconducted (art. 2721) and becomes month to month (art. 2723).
• Ending a month-to-month lease. Written notice of termination at least ten calendar days before the end of the month (Civ. Code arts. 2728 and 2729). No reason is required.
• Occupants who are not tenants get the same five-day notice (art. 4702).

2. Notices

• Notice to vacate: not less than five days (art. 4701). The landlord or the landlord’s agent must cause written notice to vacate to be delivered to the tenant, allowing “not less than five days from the date of its delivery” to leave. Paying within the five days gives the tenant no statutory right to stay.
• Waiver in the lease. The tenant “may waive the notice requirements of this Article by written waiver contained in the lease,” in which case the landlord may file immediately once the right of occupancy ends (arts. 4701 and 4731(A)). Bring the clause to court, and do not rely on a waiver for an oral lease.
• Month to month. The ten-day written notice of termination under Civ. Code art. 2728 counts as the notice to vacate (art. 4701, second paragraph), so a second five-day notice is not required. A notice given late takes effect at the end of the following month.
• Fixed-term lease. Notice to vacate may be given not more than 30 days before the term expires (art. 4701). Deliver it before the term ends, or within the first week afterward, to prevent reconduction.

How the notice is delivered. The Code says the notice must be “delivered to the lessee.” Posting on the door is allowed by statute only when the premises are abandoned or closed, or the tenant’s whereabouts are unknown (art. 4703). Some courts are more relaxed: Baton Rouge City Court tells landlords to hand the notice to the tenant in front of a witness and, if the tenant is not home, to post it with a witness or send it by certified mail, return receipt requested. The safe course is hand delivery with a witness.

How days are counted. Under Code Civ. Proc. art. 5059 the day of delivery is not counted, and because the period is shorter than seven days, legal holidays are excluded. Court instructions treat weekends the same way: Baton Rouge City Court says not to include holidays or weekends, and Shreveport City Court says the day after delivery is day one, weekend days and holidays are not counted, and five full days must pass. The notice periods in Civ. Code art. 2728 are calendar days.

Properties with a federally backed mortgage or federal subsidy may also be subject to the federal CARES Act 30-day notice for nonpayment; confirm before relying on five days or on a waiver.

3. Filing

When the notice period has run, or immediately if notice was validly waived, file a rule to show cause (often called a rule for possession) stating the grounds (art. 4731(A)). You have a choice of courts:

• Justice of the peace courts have jurisdiction, within their territory, over evictions from leased residential premises regardless of the amount of rent (art. 4912(A)(1)). In East Baton Rouge Parish, Acts 2026, No. 950 (R.S. 13:2586(C)(9)) adds concurrent jurisdiction with the city courts (see recent changes below).
• City and parish courts have jurisdiction concurrent with the district court over eviction matters regardless of the amount of rent. The remaining dollar limits on these courts in eviction cases were removed by Acts 2024, No. 129, effective August 1, 2024 (art. 4844).
• District courts can hear any eviction.

Filing fees are set locally. As examples only, Baton Rouge City Court’s November 2024 guidelines list $161 for one defendant, and Shreveport City Court lists $150.

Who may file. The Code lets the “lessor or owner, or agent thereof” bring the rule. Courts set their own proof requirements: Baton Rouge City Court requires written proof of capacity and authority to act when the owner is a partnership, corporation or other entity. Under R.S. 37:212(C), a partnership, corporation or other entity may assert a claim “not exceeding five thousand dollars” in a court of limited jurisdiction through a duly authorized partner, shareholder, officer, employee or agent. Outside that exception, and in district court, expect an entity to need a lawyer; ask the clerk how your court applies the rule to evictions.

4. Service and the hearing

The court sets the rule for hearing “not earlier than the third day after service” (art. 4732(A)). The rule is served by the officer of the court where you filed: the sheriff, the constable or the city marshal. If the premises are abandoned or closed, or the tenant’s whereabouts are unknown, the rule may be attached to the door with the same effect as personal service (art. 4703).

The tenant does not have to file a written answer to defend the case; the court “shall try the rule and hear any defense which is made.” A tenant who wants to keep the option of a suspensive appeal, however, must answer under oath (see section 5). Bring the lease, the notice with proof of delivery, the ledger and a witness. Tenants commonly argue that a landlord who takes rent after giving notice has waived the notice. That defense comes from case law, not Title XI, and we did not verify its current limits, so get advice before accepting money mid-case.

New Orleans. The City Council passed a tenant right to counsel ordinance in May 2022, and the Orleans Parish courts refer tenants to Southeast Louisiana Legal Services and the Louisiana Fair Housing Action Center. We did not read the ordinance or verify its current funding and scope, but expect more tenants there to have lawyers. We could not verify any statewide right to counsel, mandatory mediation or eviction record sealing statute, or any local just-cause or rent control ordinance.

5. Judgment and appeal

If the landlord is entitled to possession, or the tenant fails to answer or appear, the court “shall render immediately a judgment of eviction.” The judgment is effective for not less than 90 days (art. 4732(B)).

Suspensive appeal (art. 4735). An appeal does not suspend the eviction unless all three of these are true: the tenant answered the rule under oath; the answer pleaded an affirmative defense entitling the tenant to keep possession; and the appeal was applied for and the appeal bond filed within 24 hours after the judgment was rendered. The court sets the bond in an amount sufficient to protect the landlord against all damage the appeal may cause. A tenant who misses any of the three can still appeal, but the warrant goes forward.

Appeals from a justice of the peace go to the parish court, or the district court if there is none, by a new suit for trial de novo filed within 15 days of the judgment, and no further appeal is allowed (arts. 4924 and 4925). An appeal from a city or parish court must be taken within ten days from the date of the judgment or from service of notice of judgment (art. 5002). None of these ordinary appeals stops the warrant unless art. 4735 is also met. For an East Baton Rouge Parish justice of the peace case under the new R.S. 13:2586(C)(9), note that R.S. 13:2586(D) gives a person found liable under Subsection C a direct appeal to the district court by trial de novo, filed within ten days. Whether that ten-day route applies to an eviction judgment under (C)(9) is not settled by the text, so confirm the deadline and forum with the clerk.

6. The warrant and the lockout

If the tenant has not complied within 24 hours after the judgment is rendered, the court “shall issue immediately a warrant directed to and commanding its sheriff, constable, or marshal to deliver possession” (art. 4733). That is generally the ward constable for a justice of the peace, the city marshal or constable for a city court (the marshal in Shreveport, the constable in Baton Rouge), and the sheriff for a district court. In practice you request the warrant and pay the officer’s fee.

The officer executes the warrant “in the presence of two witnesses, by clearing the premises of any property therein,” and may break open locked doors, windows or gates when necessary (art. 4734). Shreveport City Court states that it is the landlord’s obligation, not the marshal’s, to move items out or have someone available to do so. Title XI sets no storage period for the tenant’s belongings, so follow the officer’s directions and photograph what is removed.

Abandonment. After the required notice has been given, a landlord may retake possession without further court process on a reasonable belief that the tenant has abandoned the premises. Indicia include occupancy ceasing, keys returned and movables removed (art. 4731(B)). In a parish under a federal disaster declaration, the fact that the tenant is not living in the unit is not evidence of abandonment for 30 days after the initial declaration.

Self-help. Outside that narrow abandonment rule, use the court process. The state legal aid site, LouisianaLawHelp.org, tells tenants that a landlord may not change the locks, shut off utilities or remove the tenant’s belongings. The Code of Civil Procedure does not list those acts itself; the statutory basis is that art. 4731’s court procedure must be followed, and the penalty below applies to a lessor who does not comply with it. A landlord who fails to comply with art. 4731 owes a residential tenant the greater of $500 or twice the monthly rent, the tenant may seek a restraining order or injunction, and the court may award costs and attorney fees to the prevailing party (art. 4731(C)).

Recent law changes landlords should know

• No change to Title XI. As of September 2026 the five-day notice (art. 4701), the executing officers (art. 4733) and the 24-hour appeal window (art. 4735) are unchanged.
• City and parish court jurisdiction (Acts 2024, No. 129, effective August 1, 2024). Art. 4844 now gives these courts eviction jurisdiction regardless of the amount of rent.
• East Baton Rouge justices of the peace (Acts 2026, No. 950). Enacts R.S. 13:2586(C)(9): concurrent eviction jurisdiction with the city courts where monthly rent does not exceed $5,000. The legislative digest lists it as effective June 22, 2026.
• Security deposits (Acts 2026, No. 63, effective August 1, 2026). Amends R.S. 9:3251(A). The deposit is still due within one month after the lease ends, and the itemized statement for amounts retained may now be sent within that month or within 15 days after it ends.
• Early lease termination (Acts 2026, No. 64, effective August 1, 2026). Amends R.S. 9:3261.1 so the early termination right for domestic abuse victims also covers stalking and cyberstalking.

What actually goes wrong

• Counting five calendar days. Weekends and legal holidays do not count, and neither does the day of delivery. Filing a day early gets the rule dismissed.
• Relying on a waiver that is not there. The waiver must be in writing and in the lease.
• Tacking the notice on the door of an occupied unit when art. 4703 does not apply.
• Letting a fixed-term lease reconduct. One week of silence after the term ends makes it month to month, and you then need a ten-day notice timed to the end of a month.
• Treating a judgment as possession. You still need the warrant, the right officer, two witnesses and your own crew.
• Calling a unit abandoned too quickly, especially after a storm. The penalty is the greater of $500 or twice the rent.

When to bring in an attorney

An individual landlord with a written lease, a properly delivered notice and a nonpayment case can often handle a rule for possession in city or justice of the peace court. Use counsel when the owner is an entity outside the R.S. 37:212(C) exception, when the tenant has a lawyer or files a sworn answer with an affirmative defense, for subsidized housing, for contested lease-violation cases, and in Orleans Parish. The Louisiana attorneys listed below represent landlords in eviction matters.

Sources

• La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 4701 to 4703 and 4731 to 4735 (Louisiana State Legislature, legis.la.gov).
• La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 4844 (Acts 2024, No. 129), 4912, 4924, 4925, 5002 and 5059; R.S. 37:212(C).
• La. Civil Code arts. 2704, 2720, 2721, 2723, 2728 and 2729.
• Acts 2026, No. 63 (HB 292, R.S. 9:3251(A)) and Acts 2026, No. 64 (HB 297), enrolled acts; Acts 2026, No. 950 (HB 708), resume digest; 2025 and 2026 citator indexes (legis.la.gov).
• Baton Rouge City Court, Eviction Procedure Guidelines (November 26, 2024); Shreveport City Court, Evictions page.
• Orleans Civil District Court, rental assistance and right to counsel page; LouisianaLawHelp.org, Evictions; Louisiana Legal Services and Pro Bono Desk Manual (Loyola).

This guide is general information about Louisiana procedure and is not legal advice. Practice varies from court to court. Confirm the current text and your court’s requirements before relying on any deadline.