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Seattle Eviction & Unlawful Detainer Lawyers

When a commercial or multi-unit tenant stops paying rent or breaches the lease, a Seattle landlord‘s only lawful path back to possession is an unlawful detainer action — Washington’s formal eviction lawsuit.

The eviction and unlawful detainer attorneys at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess represent commercial and residential-portfolio landlords across King County, quickly, correctly, and without procedural missteps that can get cases dismissed, moving defaulting tenants out through the courts.

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Legal Advice You Can Build On When a Tenancy Goes Wrong

For a Seattle landlord, an eviction is rarely about a single unpaid month. It’s about protecting the value of an asset, the terms of a lease, and the cash flow behind a mortgage. Our real estate and business attorneys handle unlawful detainer matters in King County Superior Court from offices in Seattle, Tacoma, and Olympia. We solve problems — which means telling you not just what you can do, but what you should do given the cost, timeline, and leverage in front of you.

What We Handle

Eviction is not one process in Washington; it’s several, and the right one depends entirely on the type of tenancy. We scope every matter to the lease and the law that actually governs it.

Commercial evictions and lease defaults

Commercial tenancies are governed largely by the lease itself and by the unlawful detainer statute, Chapter 59.12 RCW — not by the tenant-protective Residential Landlord-Tenant Act. That distinction matters, because the remedies available to a commercial landlord are meaningfully stronger. We represent office, retail, industrial, and mixed-use landlords in disputes involving:

  • Nonpayment of rent and CAM (common area maintenance) charges
  • Holdover tenants who remain after a fixed lease term expires
  • Lease-covenant breaches — unauthorized assignment or subletting, use violations, insurance or maintenance failures
  • “Going dark” and abandonment, where a tenant stops operating but stays on the lease and keeps owing rent
  • Enforcement against lease guarantors

For a commercial tenant’s failure to pay, the landlord must serve a three-day notice to pay rent or vacate under RCW 59.12.030(3). For other lease-covenant breaches, the tenant is entitled to a 10-day notice to comply or vacate and an opportunity to cure.

For waste or nuisance, a three-day notice to quit applies with no chance to cure. Serve the wrong notice — or serve the right one improperly — and the case gets dismissed, the clock resets, and the rent keeps not coming in. Getting the predicate notice right is the whole ballgame.

Commercial landlords also hold remedies that residential landlords do not. Under RCW 59.12.170, a court may award double the damages proven in a commercial unlawful detainer, and attorney fees are recoverable where the lease provides for them.

A judgment can also declare the lease forfeited and enter the unpaid rent as a money judgment. Many commercial landlords are surprised to learn how much stronger their position is than in the residential world they may also operate in.

Multi-Unit and Residential-Portfolio Evictions

Owners of apartment buildings and multi-unit residential portfolios face the opposite reality — one of the most heavily regulated eviction environments in the country. Residential tenancies fall under Chapter 59.18 RCW, and inside Seattle city limits the city’s own ordinances layer on top. Where state and city rules differ, the stricter rule controls. The essentials for a Seattle multi-unit owner:

  • Nonpayment requires a 14-day pay-or-vacate notice — not three days — and the notice must offer a payment plan.
  • Just cause is mandatory. Under Seattle’s Just Cause Eviction Ordinance (SMC 22.206.160) and RCW 59.18.650, you must have one of the enumerated legal reasons to end a tenancy or decline to renew a lease. There is no “no-cause” termination inside the city.
  • Registration is a precondition. If the unit is not registered and compliant under the Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance, the tenant has a complete defense to the eviction.
  • Seasonal defenses apply. Income-qualified tenants generally cannot be evicted for nonpayment between December 1 and March 1 where the owner holds four or more units, and households with school-age children or school employees have a defense during the school year.

These rules are technical, they change frequently, and a single defective notice can void months of effort. We help portfolio owners build a clean, compliant record before filing — which is where residential cases are won or lost.

Writs of Restitution and Enforcement

Winning the lawsuit is not the same as getting the keys. After a judgment for possession, we obtain the writ of restitution — the court order that authorizes the King County Sheriff to physically restore the property to you. We handle the writ, coordinate with the sheriff, and address post-judgment issues such as abandoned property and collection on the money judgment.

Self-help measures — changing the locks, removing belongings, or shutting off utilities — are unlawful in Washington and expose a landlord to real liability, no matter how far behind the tenant is. The writ is the only lawful way to force possession.

Why Landlords Choose Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess

  • We know the difference between the two systems. Commercial and residential evictions run on different statutes, notices, and timelines. We match the strategy to the tenancy instead of forcing every case through one template.
  • We protect the asset, not just the case. Our eviction work sits alongside the firm’s real estate and business practice, so lease, guaranty, and sale questions tied to the tenancy get handled together rather than in isolation.
  • Principled, transparent counsel. We lay out the realistic path — cost, timeline, and risk — so you can make a business decision rather than an emotional one.
  • King County court experience. We handle unlawful detainer actions in King County Superior Court, where these cases are filed and decided.

Your Options When a Commercial or Multi-Unit Tenant Defaults

An unlawful detainer is not always the first move — and for a landlord with significant money on the line, it shouldn’t be a reflex. When a tenant falls behind or breaches the lease, you generally have three realistic paths, and the right one depends on the tenant’s viability, the strength of your lease, and how quickly you need the space back. We help you weigh them before you commit to any of them.

Negotiate a cure or workout. If the tenant is fundamentally sound and the default is temporary, a documented repayment schedule or short-term lease modification can preserve the income stream and avoid the cost and delay of litigation. The trade-off is time — every week of forbearance is a week of exposure if the tenant doesn’t recover. Any workout has to be papered carefully so it doesn’t accidentally waive your right to proceed later.

Negotiate a voluntary surrender. Where the relationship is beyond repair but the tenant will cooperate, a negotiated move-out — sometimes with a limited incentive to leave clean and on schedule — can return possession faster than a contested court case and let you re-lease sooner. The trade-off is that you may collect less than the full judgment you might win at trial, in exchange for speed and certainty.

Proceed with an unlawful detainer. When the tenant won’t cure, won’t leave, or has gone silent, the court process is the only lawful route to possession — and for commercial landlords it carries the strongest remedies, including a money judgment, forfeiture of the lease, and potentially doubled damages under RCW 59.12.170. The trade-off is procedure: the notice and filing rules are strict, and one misstep restarts the clock.

For multi-unit residential owners, the calculus is tighter. Seattle’s just-cause requirement, registration rules, and seasonal defenses narrow your options and reward owners who plan the sequence in advance rather than react under pressure. Whichever path fits your situation, the goal is the same — resolve the default at the lowest cost and the least risk to the asset. That is the decision we help you make.

The Washington Unlawful Detainer Process, Step by Step

Most contested evictions in King County move on a predictable track. Actual timing depends on the court’s calendar and whether the tenant contests.

  • Serve the correct notice. Type and length depend on the tenancy and the breach — three days for commercial nonpayment, 14 days for residential nonpayment, 10 days for a curable lease violation, 20 days to end a periodic tenancy. Notice must be served in one of the ways RCW 59.12.040 allows; service by mail adds five days.
  • File the summons and complaint. If the notice period expires with no cure, the unlawful detainer action is filed in King County Superior Court.
  • Show-cause hearing. The court typically sets an order-to-show-cause hearing where the landlord can seek a writ of restitution. Genuinely contested cases may be set for trial.
  • Judgment. A judgment for the landlord restores possession, forfeits the lease, and can award unpaid rent and damages — doubled in qualifying commercial cases.
  • Writ of restitution. The court issues the writ and the sheriff enforces it, returning possession of the premises to you.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between an eviction and an unlawful detainer in Washington?

They’re the same thing. “Eviction” is the everyday word; “unlawful detainer” is the legal name for the lawsuit a landlord files to remove a tenant who stays past their right to possession. Every formal eviction in Washington runs through the unlawful detainer process in Chapter 59.12 RCW.

How long does a commercial eviction take in Seattle?

It depends on the notice, the court’s calendar, and whether the tenant contests. After the three-day pay-or-vacate notice expires, an uncontested commercial matter often resolves within a few weeks through the show-cause hearing; a contested case set for trial takes longer. A defective notice is the single most common cause of delay.

What notice do I give a commercial tenant who hasn’t paid rent?

A three-day notice to pay rent or vacate, under RCW 59.12.030(3). If the tenant neither pays nor vacates within three days, you can file the unlawful detainer action. Commercial notice rules differ sharply from the 14-day notice a residential tenant receives, so confirm which regime applies before you serve anything.

Can I change the locks or shut off utilities to force a tenant out?

No. Self-help evictions — lockouts, removing belongings, cutting utilities — are unlawful in Washington and can make you liable to the tenant for damages. The only lawful way to regain possession is a court-issued writ of restitution enforced by the sheriff.

What is a writ of restitution?

It’s the court order, issued after a judgment for possession, that authorizes the King County Sheriff to remove the tenant and return the property to you. It is the enforcement step that actually gets you the keys — a judgment for possession, on its own, does not.

Do Seattle’s just-cause rules apply to my building?

If your rental is residential and inside Seattle city limits, yes. The Just Cause Eviction Ordinance requires an enumerated legal reason to end a tenancy, the unit must be registered, and seasonal defenses may apply. Commercial tenancies are not subject to just-cause. Residential properties in unincorporated King County follow state law only.

Can I recover the unpaid rent and my costs, not just the property?

Often, yes. A judgment can include unpaid rent and damages, and in qualifying commercial cases the court may double the damages under RCW 59.12.170. Attorney fees are recoverable in commercial matters where the lease provides for them. Actual recovery depends on the tenant’s ability to pay.

Do I need a lawyer to evict a tenant?

Washington’s unlawful detainer rules are unforgiving on procedure, and business entities generally must appear through counsel. A single defective notice or service error restarts the process while rent goes uncollected. Counsel matters most in commercial leases and under Seattle’s layered residential rules.

Talk to a Seattle Eviction Lawyer

When you have a lot at risk, it’s time to focus on solutions. To discuss removing a defaulting commercial or multi-unit tenant, contact Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess to schedule a consultation. Seattle office: call (206) 621-1110.