Sealing an Eviction
Instructions for Filing
Revised May 2026
Sealing a record of eviction makes the court file and information about the case unavailable for public access. When an eviction record is sealed, it will no longer show up on the Clerk’s website. There is no law that requires eviction cases to be sealed, so it is up to you, the defendant, to explain to the Court why you feel you are entitled to have your request granted.
Eviction cases may have two parts: a “First Cause” and a “Second Cause.” The first cause is the landlord’s action to evict you from the property. In some cases, a landlord may also sue you for damages they allege you caused to the property and unpaid rent and utilities. This is a second cause, and if the landlord is successful on a second cause, the judge will order you to pay money – a judgment – to the landlord. If you left the property without being formally evicted but still owed the landlord money for unpaid utilities or rent, or damage to the property, the landlord may a “complaint for restitution” against you. Like a second cause, the judge may enter a money judgment against you.
What do I need to file?
Motion to Seal Eviction Record and Affidavit for Motion to Seal Record, found here. Both forms contain fillable fields, so you can type your information on the Motion and Affidavit before printing.
Information regarding your prior eviction in Toledo Municipal Court. You will need the case number for your prior eviction so that you can file your Motion and Affidavit in that case. You will also need to explain to the Court how you are eligible to request that the Court seal your record. You can find civil case information online by visiting the Clerk’s website here.
How to Complete the Motion to Seal Eviction Record
At the top of the Motion form, please type or legibly print your full name and CURRENT complete address, telephone number where you can be reached during daytime hours, and your email address.
In the next fillable field, type or legibly print your eviction case number. It will start with the letters “CVG.” If you want a hearing before the judge about your Motion, check “oral hearing requested.” This is not required.
Under numbered item 1, please check each factor that applies to you:
The Court dismissed the claim for possession (the “First Cause”) or granted judgment in my favor on the First Cause. This means a landlord filed an eviction action against you, but the judge dismissed it or reached a decision that the landlord was not entitled to evict you. You may see a journal entry in your case with language such as: “Case called for hearing. Case dismissed at Plaintiff’s request.” OR “Case called for hearing. Plaintiff present with counsel. Defendant present without counsel. Judgment to be entered for defendant for possession of property.” OR “Case called for hearing. Plaintiff failed to appear. First cause dismissed for want of prosecution.”
The landlord consents to sealing the record of eviction. Your landlord agrees that the eviction case can be sealed and made unavailable for public access. This agreement may be reflected in writing in a court order in the case. Attach a copy of it to your motion.
The landlord was granted judgment on the First Cause… The landlord was successful in getting an order to evict you from their property…and all of the following conditions are met:
At least five (5) years have passed since judgment was entered for the landlord; and… The landlord’s eviction order was filed in the case at least five years ago.
ii. At least five (5) years have passed since I have received any other adverse judgment action in this Court; and… I have not had any other eviction orders (a judgment on a First Cause) or monetary judgments for damages (a judgment on a Second Cause or judgment on a complaint for restitution) to rented property filed against me in Toledo Municipal Court in the last five years or longer.
iii. I have satisfied the judgment for money damages (the “Second Cause”), if any, in this eviction matter. If there was a second cause in this eviction case and the judge ordered you to pay the landlord money, you have repaid that amount in full or in a lesser amount the landlord agreed to accept as payment in full.
Judgment for the landlord on the First Cause was granted improperly. The landlord was granted an order allowing them to evict you from the property, but you are indicating that this judgment should not have been granted. Be prepared to explain what was improper, including any citation to legal authority.
Sealing pursuant to this Court’s discretion is appropriate under Rule 45 of the Rules of Superintendence of the Courts of Ohio. Be prepared to explain why restricting public access to the eviction record is appropriate. Attach any documentation you have in support of this claim.
Numbered item 2 references the Affidavit for Motion to Seal Eviction Record, which is included as the second page to this Motion. You may complete the Affidavit, BUT DO NOT SIGN THE AFFIDAVIT UNTIL YOU ARE IN THE PRESENCE OF A NOTARY PUBLIC OR DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT AND ARE INSTRUCTED TO DO SO, unless you are e-filing. Make sure that you believe all the statements you make to be true.
Under numbered item 3, use the space provided to briefly list any additional documents you are including with your Motion to support your request to have the eviction case sealed.
Sign the Motion.
At the bottom of the Motion is a section captioned “Certificate of Service.” You are required to make a copy of all the original documents you file with the Clerk (the Motion, Affidavit, and any supporting documentation) and deliver them to the landlord in this case (or the landlord’s attorney). You can mail these service copies by ordinary U.S. mail. Type or legibly print the name and address to whom you are mailing the documents, and include the date you put them in the mail. Sign the Certificate of Service.
How to Complete the Affidavit for Motion to Seal Eviction Record
IMPORTANT: You may complete numbered items 1-6 on the Affidavit BUT DO NOT SIGN THE AFFIDAVIT UNTIL YOU ARE IN THE PRESENCE OF A NOTARY PUBLIC OR DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT AND ARE INSTRUCTED TO DO SO, unless you are e-filing.
At the top of the Affidavit, type or print your case number from the Motion. On the first line of the Affidavit, type or legibly print your name.
Under numbered item 3, please place a checkmark next to each factor that applies to you. The checked item(s) here should match what you checked on the Motion under numbered item 1.
Numbered item 4 of the Affidavit only needs to be completed if you checked factor “C” in numbered item 3. If you need to complete this section of the Affidavit, please include your full address for all of the places you have lived in the last five (5) years, even if you were not renting the property from a landlord. If there are not enough lines for all of your addresses, you may attach an additional sheet of paper to your Affidavit to include them. If you did NOT check 3(C), leave item 4 blank.
I have previously requested and been granted the sealing of: 0 1 2 3 4 eviction cases in this Court. For numbered item 5, if you have previously filed any motions to seal other eviction records in Toledo Municipal Court that have been granted, you must indicate how many times this has happened. Answer with ‘0’ if you have not filed any other motions to seal an eviction that have been granted in Toledo Municipal Court. If you have had more than four (4) eviction cases sealed previously, the Court will not consider your Motion.
In the next fillable field, type or print any additional information you would like to tell the judge. Remember that in an affidavit, you will be asked to swear or affirm that the statements you have made are true under penalty of the law of perjury.
File your completed Motion, Affidavit, and supporting documentation with the Clerk. Filing can be done in person, electronically (e-filing through a portal available on the Clerk’s website), or by mail.
There is a $3.00 fee to file the Motion to Seal Eviction Record. The filing fee is payable by cash, check, money order or credit/debit card. Checks and money orders should be made payable to “Toledo Municipal Court.” Payments by debit or credit cards are subject to an additional 5% processing fee.
IN PERSON: The Civil Division of the Clerk’s office is located in the basement of the Toledo Municipal Court building at 555 N. Erie Street in Toledo. Bring all of your documentation with you, and your filing fee. If you have not already done so, the deputy clerk will witness your signature on the Affidavit before filing and will then sign it on the “Deputy Clerk/Notary Public” line.
E-FILING: You will need to sign the Affidavit before you can e-file it. Leave the “sworn to or affirmed” section blank. If you have not already done so, you will need to create an e-filing account and must be able to pay the filing fee by credit or debit card. Instructions on how to create an account can be found here. Your documents (the Motion, Affidavit, and supporting documentation) will need to be converted into pdf format for e-filing.
BY MAIL: Your Affidavit will need to be signed and notarized in the presence of a Notary Public BEFORE you mail your documents and payment to the Clerk’s office. The notary may charge you a fee for their service.
Do not send cash to the Clerk through the mail! Mail your check or money order for the filing fee along with your Motion, Affidavit, and supporting documentation to the Clerk at the following address:
Clerk of Court, Civil Division
Toledo Municipal Court
555 N. Erie St.
Toledo, OH 43604
Check your mail for any notices or orders from the Court.
If a hearing is scheduled, a notice will be mailed to you. You will be required to attend at the date and time indicated. If you have a scheduling conflict for the hearing date and time, you may file a written request for a continuance with the Clerk. You must state in your continuance the reason(s) you have for asking the judge to reschedule the hearing, and you will need to serve or mail a copy to the landlord or landlord’s attorney.
The landlord will have seventeen (17) days from the date you filed your Motion to prepare and file their response. Even if you did not request an oral hearing, the landlord can do so in their response. If no hearing is requested and the seventeen (17) days have passed, the judge will review the motion and issue a decision as their schedule allows. You will receive a copy of the Court’s decision by mail at the address you provided.
If you need the services of an interpreter for a scheduled hearing, you may learn more about the Court’s interpreter services or request an interpreter by clicking here
It is your obligation to update the Clerk’s office if any of your contact information changes while the Court considers your request to seal the eviction record! If you need to provide notification of a new address, telephone number, or email address, do it on this form, file it, and mail a copy of the form to the landlord or landlord’s attorney so they know where to serve documents upon you.
