Do I need to present if I hire lawyer to evict tenant?

[Sue Chen]

I might need to evict my tenant for non-payment, I have never done an eviction before, I've heard that it's not hard to DIY, but unfortunately i have made travel plan where i will be out of town for few weeks. Question is, if I hire a lawyer to file the eviction, do I need to be around for anything? court appearance, paper signing, etc?

[John Warren]

@Sue Chen that is a very state, and even county, specific question. You should ask your attorney about it to make sure you are doing everything correctly. I have been through the process twice in Cook County, IL, and it was not something I would take lightly. I did exactly what my attorney told me both times, and in both cases we ended up settling so we could get the unit back in service more quickly.