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Rent Regulations

Cal. Civ. Code § 70-27-117

Judgment By Default

In Force
Verified 10/22/2026 · Next check 11/21/2026
effective 10/22/2026MontanaSummary Process

Operative Text

Cal. Civ. Code § 70-27-117
If the defendant does not appear and defend within 10 days of service, the court shall enter the defendant's default and enter judgment in favor of the plaintiff as requested in the complaint.
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

Under Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-117, when a defendant in an eviction or related proceeding fails to appear or respond within 10 days of being served with the complaint, the court is required to enter a default and issue a judgment in favor of the plaintiff. This is an automatic procedural consequence triggered solely by the defendant's inaction — the plaintiff does not need to prove their case at a hearing if the defendant does not show up. The rule applies in the context of Montana's unlawful detainer and related civil proceedings.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 22, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-117 provides a procedural mechanism that benefits plaintiffs — typically landlords — when a defendant fails to respond to a properly served complaint within the 10-day window. Operators who have filed a complaint and completed proper service generally document that service carefully, since the court's ability to enter a default judgment depends on the record showing timely and valid service. Maintaining thorough records of service and filing is a standard practice for landlords pursuing claims under this statute.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-117 means that a tenant who has been served with a complaint has only 10 days to appear and defend before the court may automatically enter a judgment against them. Tenants who receive court papers generally have the option to respond in writing, appear at the court, or contact a tenant-rights organization to understand what a timely response might involve. If a default judgment has already been entered, there may be procedural avenues to seek relief from that judgment, which a legal aid organization or tenant advocacy group could help explain.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 22, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Current
Oct 22, 2026
Click on timeline segments to view historical versions.

References Out

No outbound references recorded yet for this provision.

References In

Rules and statutes that cite this regulation

Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-103
Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-111
Mont. Code Ann. § 70-27-205

Related Rules

§ 1
Persons entitled to summary process
§ 3
Judgment and execution; costs; appeal
§ 5
Appeal; bond; actions thereon; waiver; appeal of waiver or periodic payments; notice of decision

Source Information

Source:https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0700/chapter_0270/part_0010/section_0170/0700-0270-0010-0170.html
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