General Instructions for Filing in Magistrate Court:

These instructions are a general guide to filing legal matters in Magistrate Court. Handling legal matters in any court can be technical and complicated. Legal advice on how to achieve your goal can only come from a lawyer with whom you have discussed the specifics of the problem you seek to resolve. Almost all Magistrate Court matters have forms available that will help guide you through the information required.  The Clerks are not lawyers and cannot give you legal advice. Suing someone in Magistrate Court is a "small claim."

• 1. The Magistrate Court can only give you a judgment for the money that is owed you, it cannot order someone to do or not do some act.

  2. The amount of money cannot exceed $15,000.00

  3. When you file a claim the person you sue may file a counterclaim against you. If

  4. they do, you cannot dismiss and walk away without their agreement.

  5. The form for a small claim has an area for the statement of claim. The statement of claim should be a short, simple statement of why you are suing them and what you want from the court. It must be specific enough for the person you are suing to understand why they have been sued. It does not need to include all the details, just enough information for the person sued to be clear about why they have been sued.

  6. No filing of any kind in Magistrate Court can include certain personal identifying information. You MUST NOT include specific personal identification information on these forms.

     1. If there is an account number uses x’s except for the last four digits, i.e. xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-1234.

     2. If there is a Social Security Number use x’s except for the last four digits, i.e. xxx-xx-1234.

     3. If there is a birthdate use x’s except for the year of birth, i.e. xx/xx/1952.If you fail to follow this rule about personal identifying information, you can be ORDERED to fix it, and, if you fail to do so after being ORDERED to, you can be held in Contempt.

  7. There are some situations where identifying information is required, like a garnishment. You must make sure that the complete information only appears on the Defendant and the Garnishee’s copies, not on the original forms filed with the clerk.

  8. Just about everything filed in the Magistrate Court needs to "served" on the Defendant. The Marshall or Sheriff’s Office will attempt to perform this service for a very reasonable fee. The person’s name and address information must be correct. (No post office boxes.) They will try several times to serve the papers, but do not guarantee success. Proper service is a requirement for a valid action and the duty to achieve proper service is up to you. If the Marshall or Sheriff cannot succeed, it is up to you to hire a "process server" and achieve service. No service means no lawsuit.

  9. Everyone needs to be sued in the County where they live. Businesses have a person designated as the "agent for service". You can sue a business where the "agent for service" has his address or where they are in business. It is up to you to know the correct legal name of the business. There are exceptions to these rules and it is up to you to know if exceptions apply to your situation.

  10. The person or business sued has thirty days (in most cases, less than that in certain cases, like dispossessories have only seven days) from the date of service to file an answer and, if they desire, a counterclaim. After they have done so, you will receive a court date. All the copies of the service forms have the number of days a person has to file an answer. Read the form carefully to know the answer period for your type of case.

  11. Bring to court on the court date all your witnesses, pictures, papers, or anything else, that relates to proving you are right about the problem causing you to sue. You must bring proof that the amount of money you seek is justified and correct.

  12. Defendants should bring to Court all the witnesses, pictures, papers, or anything else, to prove that your side is right and that the Plaintiff is NOT entitled to what s/he is asking for.

  13. If you have a legal reason to ask for a different court date, you must ask in advance, in writing, and your request must also be sent to the other side.

  14. EVERYTHING you file with the court, after the initial filing, MUST have a copy sent to the other side and you must certify, on whatever you file, that you have mailed a copy to the other side.

  15. If no answer is filed 45 days after service of the initial complaint (less in certain types of cases) you may be entitled to a default judgment. Some cases need to go to court anyway for you to prove the amount of money you ask for, some do not. All cases in default need what’s called a military affidavit for a default judgment to be issued. Google is your friend, learn what a "Military Affidavit" is and how to get one if your case has a default.

  16. You are encouraged, and in some cases, required, to try and talk to the other side and reach an agreement to resolve the problem. Settlement is good and you should try and resolve it yourselves. Any time you can find a middle ground and shake hands is better than the risk of winning or losing that always comes with going to Court. Settlement Agreements should always be put in writing, signed by both parties, and filed with the Court.

  17. Courts are "self-help" places. It is up to you to learn and know the rules of court. It is up to you to learn and know what you need to prove to win your side of your case. No instruction sheet can give you all the rules and information. That is why law school lasts three years. If you are in doubt, have questions, need assistance, consult a lawyer.