What are the requirements for sealing my eviction record?

You will need certain information to file the court’s petition:

• Case Docket Number (if you know this, you may not need the rest of the information listed)
• Information about the reason for your eviction
• Name and contact information of the landlord or the landlord’s lawyer
• The name of the court that your eviction action was heard in
• The date of the final decision in your eviction

You can find this information on court documents related to your eviction. You can also go to the Trial Court’s website and look your case up. Learn how to search the court’s online list of cases.

If the information in your record looks incorrect, see “What can I do if I see errors on my court eviction record?” 

If your case was dismissed, you can seal your eviction record after the appeal period has passed and the case is concluded. This applies to all types of evictions (cause/fault, no cause/no fault, and non-payment of rent).

Cases can be dismissed in different ways, including:

• A judge can dismiss a case. 
• A landlord can voluntarily dismiss a case. 
• Parties can dismiss a case after a tenant complies with a court agreement.    

If the case was dismissed and you file a petition to seal, you are not required to give the other party notice of the petition to seal. For more information on the appeal period, see When is the appeal period over?

If the judge issues a final judgment in your favor on the eviction, you can seal your eviction record after the appeal period is over and the case is concluded. You do not need to give the landlord in your case a copy of the petition. This applies to all types of summary process evictions (fault/cause, no-fault/no-cause, and non-payment of rent). For more information on the appeal period, see When is the appeal period over?

If there was a judgment in your favor in a Chapter 139, Section 19 “speedy eviction” case, see If my eviction was a Chapter 139, Section 19 eviction, how can I seal my eviction record?

A no-fault (or no-cause) eviction is when a landlord is evicting a tenant for reasons other than violating the lease or failing to pay rent. This includes business or financial reasons or because the lease ended.

If you were evicted in a no-fault case, you can petition to seal your eviction record after the appeal period is over and the case is concluded. See When is the appeal period over?

You will need to notify the landlord by providing them a copy of the petition or if they have a lawyer, to their lawyer. 
 

If the eviction is for non-payment of rent and you have paid the money that you owed, you can ask the court to seal your eviction record as soon as the landlord files a Notice of Satisfaction (a document indicating you have paid the amount due). The amount you owe may have been ordered by a court, or you may have agreed to pay it in an agreement with your landlord.  

The Notice of Satisfaction notifies the court that you paid. The landlord has 14 days to file this notice after you have paid the amount you owed. (Note that the amount due will likely include court costs and interest.) Then you can petition the court to seal your record. You will need to give the landlord notice by sending them a copy of your petition to seal.

If the landlord does not notify the court that you paid the amount due, you can notify the court using a form called a Petition for Judgment or Agreement to be Deemed Satisfied.

You can submit this form 14 days after you paid and ask the court to determine (or “deem”) that the judgment or agreement in your case has been paid (or “satisfied”.) You will need to give the landlord notice by sending them a copy of this form. The landlord has 7 days to object to this. If 7 days pass and there is no objection, the court can determine that the amount you owe was paid and “satisfied.” You can get this form on the court's eviction sealing webpage under "Nonpayment of rent eviction cases."

After that, you can file a petition to seal your eviction record. You will need to give the landlord notice by sending them a copy of your petition to seal.

If the eviction was for non-payment of rent and you did not pay the money that the court told you to pay or that you agreed to pay, you can petition to seal your eviction record if:

1. The case, including the appeal period, ended at least 4 years ago, and 
2. You certify in the petition that could not pay all of the money owed because of a financial hardship, and 
3. There have been no other eviction cases or what is called a “lessor action” filed against you in Massachusetts for non-payment in the past 4 years.

A “lessor action” is a civil action against an owner/manager relating to unsafe housing conditions and other violations of any other law. But it is unlikely that a tenant who is petitioning to have their record sealed will become an owner/manager and be sued by a tenant in the 4 years prior to filing a petition. 

You will need to notify the landlord that you have petitioned to seal. If they object to your record being sealed within 7 days of your filing a petition, there will be a hearing and you may need to submit a court form called a “financial statement” showing why you were unable to pay. If 7 days pass and no one objects, the court may process your eviction sealing petition without a hearing.

A fault eviction is when a landlord evicts someone because they broke the terms of the lease or rental agreement by doing something other than failing to pay rent. This may also be called a “cause eviction.” You can petition to seal your eviction record if:

1. The case, including the appeal period, ended at least 7 years ago, and 
2. No other fault eviction case or what is called a “lessor action” was brought against you in Massachusetts in the 7 years before you file an eviction record sealing petition. Another type of eviction brought against you, such as no-fault eviction or non-payment eviction, does not affect your ability to file a petition.

A “lessor action” is a civil action against an owner/manager relating to unsafe housing conditions and other violations of any other law. But it is unlikely that a tenant who is petitioning to have their record sealed will become an owner/manager and be sued by a tenant in the 7 years prior to filing a petition.

You must give the landlord notice that you are filing a petition to seal. The landlord has 7 days to object. If 7 days pass and no one objects, the court may seal your record without a hearing.

A Chapter 139, Section 19 civil action - also known as a “speedy eviction” - is when a landlord claims that the tenant committed certain crimes in or around the apartment. In this type of case, if the landlord got a judgment in their favor from the court or by an agreement, you can petition to seal your eviction record if:

1. The case, including the appeal period, ended at least 7 years ago, and
2. You have not had a fault eviction or another Chapter 139, Section 19 eviction brought against you in Massachusetts in the last 7 years, and
3. You have not been convicted of a criminal offense in the past 7 years that is referenced in Chapter 139, Section 19 which includes illegal sale of drugs.

The court must hold a hearing on your petition to determine whether these requirements have been met and also whether sealing your eviction is “in the interest of justice and public safety.”

If the landlord did not get a judgment in their favor in a Chapter 139, Section 19 case, then you can file the petition after the appeal period is over and the case is concluded. The appeal period for a Chapter 139, Section 19 case is 30 days from the date of the judgment. You must give the landlord notice that you are filing a petition to seal.