Cal. Civ. Code § 9-122
COVID-19 emergency sealing of court file
Operative Text
COVID-19 emergency sealing of court file. (a) As used in this Section, "COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period" means the period beginning on March 9, 2020, when the Governor issued the first disaster proclamation for the State to address the circumstances related to COVID-19, and ending on March 31, 2022. (b) The court file shall be sealed upon the commencement of any residential eviction action during the COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period. If a residential eviction action filed during the COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period is pending on the effective date of this Act and is not sealed, the court shall order the sealing of the court file. In accordance with Section 9-121.5, no sealed court file, sealed under this Section, shall be disseminated. (c) If the court enters a judgment in favor of the landlord, the court may also enter an order to unseal the court file under this Section. A court shall order the court file to be unsealed if: (1) the action is not based in whole or in part on the nonpayment of rent during the COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period; and(2) The requirements of subsection (b) or (c) of Section 9-121.5 have not been met.(d) Subsections (d) through (h) of Section 9-121.5 shall also be applicable and incorporated into this Section.
Under 735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5 § 9-122, any residential eviction case filed between March 9, 2020 and March 31, 2022 — the defined 'COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period' — was required to have its court file sealed at the outset, shielding the case record from public dissemination. Cases filed during that window that were still pending when the law took effect and had not yet been sealed were subject to a mandatory sealing order. If a landlord ultimately obtained a judgment, the court gained discretion to unseal the file, but unsealing was only required when the eviction was not based even in part on unpaid rent during the covered period and certain additional conditions under Section 9-121.5 were satisfied.
Plain English — not legal advice.
Operators who filed residential eviction actions during the COVID-19 emergency and economic recovery period defined in 735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5 § 9-122 should be aware that those case files were sealed by operation of law, limiting their public availability. A landlord who obtained a judgment in such a case may petition the court to unseal the file, but the court will evaluate whether the action was rooted in non-payment of rent during the covered period and whether the criteria of Section 9-121.5 have been met before ordering unsealing. Compliant operators generally maintain documentation of the grounds for any eviction action filed during that period, as the basis for the case is directly relevant to whether unsealing is available.
General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.
Under 735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5 § 9-122, tenants who faced residential eviction proceedings filed between March 9, 2020 and March 31, 2022 have the protection of a sealed court record, meaning that sealed file cannot be disseminated in accordance with Section 9-121.5. If a landlord seeks to unseal the record after obtaining a judgment, the court must assess whether the eviction was tied to unpaid rent during the covered period — a factor that can limit unsealing. Tenants who believe a sealed record has been improperly accessed or that an unsealing order was entered in error may consider contacting a tenant-rights organization or consulting an attorney familiar with Illinois eviction sealing law for general information about available options.
General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.
Generated September 18, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.
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