Eviction Case Outcomes

If it is your first time visiting the site, be sure to read the Data Availability and Working with the Data pages.

To see the data visualizations on your phone, rotate your device to landscape (horizontal).

Updated on: April 19, 2024

Every eviction case that goes to court will eventually end one of two ways - with a judgment of eviction or a dismissal. The time between when a case is filed and when the final judgment is issued varies. It can be as fast as a matter of days or a case can remain open for several months pending a final judgment. This page reports the outcomes of eviction cases in Oregon each month, according to when the final judgment was issued.  

Judgments issued are the recorded outcome of an eviction lawsuit, but they do not fully describe the housing stability outcomes of the tenants. Judgments of eviction are not the only way that tenants are displaced through the eviction process. However, tenants who are displaced and have a judgment of eviction on their record face increased housing instability in the future because of the judgment of eviction. Landlords are allowed to refuse to rent to tenants with a judgment of eviction issued against them in the past five years. Tenants can be displaced from their housing but have their eviction case dismissed. 

Data Notes:

The bar graph above, Eviction Case Outcomes, shows how many judgments of eviction and dismissals have been issued and in what month they were issued. This graphic is a snapshot of case outcomes as the cases stand at the time the data are tabulated. Each case only appears once in this graph.

At any time, there are additional cases that are open and pending that have not yet been issued a final judgment. As these cases close, they will be represented in this graphic in the month the final judgment is issued. The graphic to the right, Status of Eviction Cases Filed in Oregon by Year, shows the percent of cases filed each year that have closed with either a dismissal or Judgment of Eviction, and the percent of cases that remain open.

Judgments of Eviction: These are recorded on a tenant’s record as a judgment of eviction, and can be considered as a reason to deny future housing to that tenant. Indicates that a judge has determined that the landlord should regain possession of the unit - thereby prevailing in (winning) the lawsuit they filed. 

Judgments of eviction can be issued if: 

  • the tenant fails to appear at a court hearing. This is called a judgment of eviction by default. The majority of judgments of eviction issued in Oregon are default judgments for failure to appear. 

  • a declaration of noncompliance is filed by the landlord alleging that the terms of the Stipulated Agreement on file have not been met.

  • the landlord prevails at trial.

When a judgment of eviction is issued, the judge chooses a move-out date by which the tenant must vacate the unit. The move-out date can be as soon as 24 hours after the judgment is issued. After that date, if the tenant has not left the unit, the landlord can pay the sheriffs to execute a writ of eviction, also known as performing a lockout. 

Dismissals: The case is over and no judgment of eviction was issued. This does not necessarily mean that the tenant “won” or even that the tenant retains possession of the unit (is still living there). 

Dismissals can be issued if:

  • the complaint is based on a faulty notice, was improperly filed/served, or other procedural mistakes made by the plaintiff.

  • the landlord does not appear for a court date.

  • the landlord requests to drop the case. They do not need to provide a reason why, just that they do not wish to pursue the case. Reasons for requesting a dismissal can include that the tenant has vacated the unit, paid the amount on the notice, or has otherwise settled the issue.

  • the parties filed a Stipulated Agreement to avoid going to trial, and no declaration of noncompliance is filed against the tenant.

  • the tenant prevails at trial.

Special Circumstances that are Infrequent:

Reversing or vacating a previously issued final judgement:

Under certain circumstances, a judgment of eviction or a dismissal can be reversed or vacated. 

  • When a judgment is reversed, the previously issued judgment is nullified and a new judgment is issued. 

  • When a judgment is vacated, the previously issued judgment is nullified and the case reverts to being an open case, awaiting final judgment.

This webpage is updated monthly. When we upload new data, cases that have been reversed will move from the column in which the initial judgment was issued to the monthly column in which the new judgment was issued. Cases that have been vacated will drop off of this chart until a new judgment is issued. 

Multiple judgments or defendant tenants in one case:

Some cases have multiple judgments issued. If all of the judgments that are issued are dismissals, that case will appear once in this graph as a dismissal in the month the last dismissal was issued. If any of the judgments issued is a judgment of eviction, that case will appear once as a judgment of eviction in the month that judgment was issued. 

We choose to count any case that ends with a tenant having a judgment of eviction on their record as a case that ended in an eviction.