Quick Answer
You have 10 court days from service of the Summons to file an Answer in a California unlawful detainer case (CCP § 1167). Use Judicial Council Form UD-105. The Answer is where you raise affirmative defenses, habitability, retaliation, defective notice, improper service, payment, waiver, and request a jury trial. Missing the deadline means a default judgment in days.
Key Takeaways
- Deadline: 10 court days from personal service (CCP § 1167, as amended by AB 2347). Weekends and California judicial holidays do not count.
- Use Form UD-105, the Judicial Council unlawful detainer answer.
- Affirmative defenses go in Item 3, check the boxes that apply and add detail in Item 3u.
- Item 4 is your jury demand. Demand it.
- File with the court clerk and serve a copy on the landlord or their lawyer the same day.
- Fee waiver Form FW-001 if you cannot afford the filing fee.
- If you were served by sub-service or post-and-mail, the deadline is extended, count carefully.
The 10-day deadline, start counting today
Under CCP § 1167, you have 10 court days from the date the Summons and Complaint were served on you to file a response. Court days exclude weekends and California judicial holidays. So the 10 court days typically span about 14 calendar days. Personal service starts the 10-day clock on the day of service. Substituted service (someone other than you was handed the papers, plus a copy mailed) or service by posting and mailing extends the timeline, but do not assume an extension applies until counsel has verified.
What to file, Judicial Council Form UD-105
The standard Answer is Form UD-105 (“Answer, Unlawful Detainer”). It is a 4-page Judicial Council form. Download it from the California Courts website, or use the editable PDF version. The same form is used in every California county and is accepted by every superior court.
Section-by-section walkthrough
Caption
Copy the caption from the Complaint exactly: court, case number, plaintiff name, defendant name (yours). Errors here cause clerk-level rejections.
Item 1, Defendant identification
State your name as the answering defendant. If the Complaint named additional defendants (other adult tenants), each named defendant needs their own Answer or to be named on a joint Answer.
Item 2, Denials
Check Item 2a to make a general denial if the rent demanded in the Complaint is $1,000 or less, or Item 2b for a specific denial. For most UDs, a specific denial paired with affirmative defenses is the stronger approach. Identify which paragraphs of the Complaint you admit, deny, or lack information to admit or deny.
Item 3, Affirmative defenses (the heart of the form)
This is where the case is usually won or lost. Item 3 lists check-box defenses, including:
- 3a, Habitability (CC § 1941.1)
- 3b, Retaliation (CC § 1942.5)
- 3c, Discrimination (FEHA / Unruh Act)
- 3d, Waiver / change in terms / estoppel
- 3e: Cancellation, modification or surrender
- 3f, Equitable defenses
- 3g, Plaintiff lacks standing
- 3h, Improper notice / served on wrong person / overstated rent
- 3i, COVID-related defenses (if applicable)
- 3j, Local rent-control or just-cause defenses (LARSO, AB 1482)
- 3k, Other (use 3u to write your own defense)
Item 3u is where you put any additional defenses in your own words. This is where issues like improper service, breach of quiet enjoyment, ADA / FEHA reasonable accommodation, Stay Housed LA protections, or a defective LARSO no-fault notice get articulated.
Item 4, Jury demand
Check the jury-demand box. UD cases are summary proceedings, but tenants have a constitutional right to a jury trial. A jury demand affects scheduling and often plaintiff strategy.
Item 5, Other relief
Request attorney fees if there is a reciprocal attorney-fee clause in the lease (CC § 1717). Request costs of suit.
Verification
Sign under penalty of perjury. The verification is at the bottom of the form.
Filing the Answer
File the Answer with the court clerk in the courthouse where the Complaint is filed, usually the courthouse closest to the property. Most LA County courts accept e-filing through One Legal, File & ServeXpress, or similar e-filing providers. Pay the filing fee (typically $225–$435 depending on amount in controversy) or submit Form FW-001 with FW-003 for a fee waiver.
Serving the Answer on the landlord
Serve a file-stamped copy on the plaintiff (the landlord) or their attorney the same day you file. Service can be by mail, fax (if agreed), or personal delivery to opposing counsel’s office. File a Proof of Service Form POS-030 documenting the service.
What happens after you file
Once your Answer is on file, the plaintiff has 20 days to set the case for trial under CCP § 1170.5(a). UD trials are typically set within 20 days of the trial request. Between filing and trial, both sides can serve discovery (interrogatories, requests for production, requests for admission, depositions) — UD discovery responses are due in 5 days under CCP § 2030.260(c), 2031.260(c), and 2033.250(c), with the cutoff 5 days before trial (CCP § 2024.020(b)).
Common mistakes that lose UD cases
- Filing past the 10-day deadline, counsel can sometimes get a default vacated, but never count on it.
- Filing only a general denial without raising affirmative defenses, issues not raised are usually waived.
- Failing to demand a jury.
- Filing in the wrong court.
- Forgetting to serve the Answer on opposing counsel.
What to do right now
- Confirm the service date on the Summons. Count 10 court days from the day after service.
- Download Form UD-105 and Form POS-030.
- Gather: the lease, the notice you received, all rent receipts, photos of habitability issues, any written communications with the landlord.
- Get counsel on board before the deadline. A well-pleaded Answer changes the trajectory of the case.
Related pages
- Just Served Eviction Papers?
- UD Timeline
- Motion to Quash UD Summons
- Demurrer to UD
- UD Discovery Rules
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Frequently asked questions
Do I have to use Form UD-105?
It is the Judicial Council form designed for tenant Answers. Using UD-105 ensures every required element is addressed and the affirmative defenses are checked correctly.
What is the difference between a general denial and a specific denial?
A general denial denies every allegation at once. A specific denial responds paragraph by paragraph. For an unverified complaint, general denial is fine. For a verified complaint, specific denials are required.
Which affirmative defenses should I check on UD-105 Item 3?
Every defense supported by the facts. The most common are 3a (habitability), 3b (retaliation), 3h (defective notice / improper service / overstated rent), and 3j (no just cause).
What happens after I file the Answer?
The case moves to either a case management conference or directly to trial setting. The landlord can move to set the case for trial within 20 days of your Answer under CCP § 1170.5.
Do I need to demand a jury trial?
Almost always yes. Item 4 of UD-105 is the jury demand. A jury demand changes scheduling and plaintiff strategy.
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