Small Claims Court: What is It?

Many people inevitably get swept up into small claims legalities each year simply because there are issues betwen two private individuals. Usually the monetary value is less than $5000 that is being disputed. Each state and county government will have its own rules and regulations concerning the maximum amount of money that could be involved in small claims court.

Why go to Small Claims Court?

But the usual scenario of an average small claims process begins when one person fails to repay another individual. Through a demand letter and other forms of pleading, for one reason or another the person fails to simply pay up. This is the reason that small claims court has to get involved. But if you are considering going to small claims court over a claim you may have on another individual, it would be wise to give it a long and hard thought before you actually enter into the process.

What are the Fees?

There will always be fees associated with paying the court, and small claims court is no different. There will usually be fees assessed to get the small claims process started and those fees are normally set by the city or county in which the court resides. Most small claims courts, however, will have a limit of $35 - $50 on the amount that can be charged to get the small claims process starting.

What happens if the judge rules in your favor? If the judge rules in your favor, that simply means that the person who owes you has to pay up. There is no payment plan that the court mediates between the two of you and there is no enforcement by the actual court to get you to pay up. As the saying goes, "You can't get blood from a tunip," and that certainly holds true for those that actually have very little to no income.

Other Fees

So who enforces the payments that you're owed? You, yourself, are actually responsible for enforcing the payment. The judge has ruled and now you are responsible for making the other person pay up. There are certain ways in which the court will help you, however, get your claim back from the debtor. For example, you can and are able to garnish a person's wages. Of course, this initially costs money and also costs money each and every time that you want to go back and garnish the person's wages.

Taking these costs, as well as the initial court fees and costs, into consideration is all part of determining whether or not enforcing your claim is actually worth the price you are going to pay. Even though small claims court is a good institution in theory, there are several problems with actually getting your debtor to pay his end of the bargain. Mediation is a service that the court offers and it works with both of you to come to a civil agreement about the argument. The small claims process is definitely a good idea for larger amounts of money, but when below $1000, the process just may not be worth the trouble!