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Small claims court is a do-it-yourself court where ordinary people, including businesses, can act as their own attorneys and where paperwork and legal mumbo jumbo are kept to a minimum. The court is a quick and inexpensive way to resolve relatively simple, non-criminal matters. Cases heard in small claims court commonly involve problems relating to car repair, property damage, small business issues, and landlord-tenant disputes. In the vast majority of states, a judge, not a jury, hears your case.
 | Contact the small claims court in your area to find out the specifics for bringing a lawsuit in that court. The court should have printed information to send to you and people with whom you can discuss your case. |
Ordinarily, you can only sue for monetary damages in small claims court. If you want to sue someone to force him to do or not do something (live up to the terms of a contract, for example), then small claims court is not the court for you. Also, as its name implies, suits brought in small claims court involve relatively small amounts of money. In most states, the maximum you can sue for in small claims court is between $3,000 and $5,000. However, at the time this article was researched, the maximum in Kentucky was just $1,500, and in Delaware and Georgia you could sue for as much as $15,000.
You can reduce the amount you sue for so that it meets your state's maximum. Doing so is called "waiving the excess."
Going to trial
All the things a lawyer may do to initiate a civil lawsuit and prepare for a trial are your responsibilities when you sue in small claims court. It's up to you to file the appropriate paperwork, meet deadlines, and arrange to have each of the defendants in your case served with a notice of your lawsuit.
You're also responsible for deciding
- What evidence is important to your case
- Whether or not to call witnesses
- Which witnesses may be most convincing to a judge
- How to present your evidence so that you increase your chance of winning your lawsuit
| If you call witnesses, talk with them ahead of time about your lawsuit, about the defendant's position, and about what you need them to say. Doing so is perfectly legal as long as you're not asking a witness to lie. This pretrial preparation can help ensure that you don't lose your case because a witness inadvertently sabotages it. |
If the defendant doesn't appear in court on the date of your trial, you will probably win your lawsuit by default; otherwise, you learn the judge's decision by mail.
A growing number of judges are announcing their decisions while the plaintiff and defendant are still in the courtroom, which gives the judge an opportunity to explain the decision.
If the court rules in your favor, the judge has the discretion to award you the full amount of money you ask for in your lawsuit or something less. The judge can also order the defendant to pay your award in a single payment or in a series of payments.
 | Depending on your state, if you're the plaintiff in a small claims case, you may not be able to appeal the judge's verdict. If you're the defendant and lose, you can usually appeal. |
Representing yourself
Show respect for the court and don't waste the judge's time. Here are some tips that may help your cause when you go to small claims court.
- Dress neatly and watch your grooming (Do we really need to tell you this?). Comb your hair, shave, tuck in your shirt, cover up your midriff.
- Be polite. That means no shouting, interrupting, dirty looks, loud sighs . . . you get the message.
- Be organized. Know what you're going to say and be as specific as possible. To bolster your case, when possible, provide receipts, contracts, warranties, invoices, canceled checks, letters, and so on. When appropriate, illustrate your problem with used car parts, shoddy merchandise, and photos of damage.
- Be as brief as possible when presenting your case to the court, and don't get carried away! If you go on too long, introduce too many witnesses, or start acting like you think you're an attorney, you risk alienating the judge and losing your case.
- Emphasize reimbursement. Be certain that before you end your presentation, the judge knows that you want to be reimbursed for your court costs if you win.
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