Notwithstanding Articles 4842(A) and 4843, a parish court or city court shall, within its territorial jurisdiction, have jurisdiction, concurrent with the district court, over the following matters, regardless of the amount of daily, monthly, or yearly rent or the rent for the unexpired term of the lease or the annual value of the right of occupancy:
Art. 4844.Amount In Dispute; Eviction Proceedings
Book VIII. Trial Courts of Limited Jurisdiction · Title I. General Dispositions · Chapter 2. Civil Jurisdiction · Last amended 2024 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4844 lets a parish or city court hear certain eviction and possession suits between landlords and tenants or occupants regardless of the rent amount or property value involved, overriding the dollar caps that Articles 4842 and 4843 otherwise impose.
Full Text of Art. 4844
(1) Suits by owners and landlords for the possession of leased premises.
(2) Suits by landowners or lessors for eviction of occupants or tenants of leased residential premises.
(4) Suits by landowners or lessors for the eviction of occupants or tenants of leased commercial premises and leased farmlands.
Amendment History
Amended by Acts 2024, No. 129, §1, eff. 8/1/2024. Amended by Acts 2022, No. 361, §1, eff. 8/1/2022. Amended by Acts 2020, No. 205, §3, eff. 6/11/2020. Acts 1986, No. 156, §1; Acts 1995, No. 204, §1; Acts 1999, No. 102, §1; Acts 2010, No. 219, §1.
Plain-English Summary
Eviction cases do not fit neatly into a dollar-value framework, and Article 4844 recognizes that. It carves eviction and related possession suits out of the ordinary jurisdictional caps that Articles 4842 and 4843 set for parish and city courts, so these courts can hear them no matter how large the rent or property value happens to be.
The article covers a defined set of matters: an owner or landlord's suit for possession of leased premises, a landowner or lessor's suit to evict a tenant of leased residential property, a suit to evict an occupant who holds property without a lease under the terms defined elsewhere in this Code, and a landowner or lessor's suit to evict a tenant of leased commercial premises or farmland.
The reasoning tracks the same logic behind the injunction carve-outs in Articles 4842 and 4843: an eviction suit is fundamentally about restoring possession, not about a specific sum of money. A landlord renting out an expensive commercial space, or a piece of farmland with a high annual value, should not have to file in district court only because the monthly or yearly figures involved exceed a parish or city court's ordinary jurisdictional ceiling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a high monthly rent push an eviction case out of city or parish court?
No. Article 4844 lets these courts hear eviction and possession suits regardless of the rent amount, the rent for the unexpired lease term, or the value of the right of occupancy.
What kinds of eviction suits does Article 4844 cover?
Suits by owners or landlords for possession of leased premises, evictions of residential or commercial tenants, evictions of occupants without a lease, and evictions involving leased farmland.
Why are eviction suits exempt from the jurisdictional dollar caps?
Because an eviction suit seeks to restore possession of property rather than recover a specific sum of money, so tying it to a dollar threshold would not match what the case is about.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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