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Frequently Asked
Questions
Who Can Sue and Be Sued?
- Any individual, business, partnership, or corporation
(with a couple of exceptions) may bring a small claims suit for recovery
of money only for an amount up to $5,000 (as of July 1, 2008).
- A small claims case must be filed in the county of
the defendant's residence, or in the case of a traffic accident, the
county where the accident occurred.
- The state of Washington may not be sued in Small
Claims Court.
- Attorneys and paralegals are excluded from appearing
or participating with the plaintiff or defendant in a small claims suit
unless the judge grants permission.
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How Much Does It Cost? You
must pay the court clerk a filing fee of $39 at the time the suit is filed.
A portion of this fee ($15) is dedicated to support
of the county dispute resolution center. You may have some additional
fees payable to the sheriff or process server to have the Notice of
Small Claims served on the defendant. As an alternative, you may
commence the suit by registered or certified, return receipt mailing. If
you win your case, you are entitled to recover your costs of filing and
service fees. Back to Top
How Do I Get Started? First you will prepare a Notice of Small Claim form that is provided by
the clerk. On the Notice form a hearing date, trial date, or response
date will be entered by the clerk. It is the plaintiff's responsibility
to accurately identify the defendant, provide a proper address and, if
possible, provide a phone number. Back to Top
How Do I Notify the Defendant -- Service The Notice
The clerk will assist you with all the steps and procedures of starting
a suit. The clerk is not allowed to give legal advice or attempt to
predict how the judge might rule in a given situation. Service of the
claim form can be accomplished by any of the following:
- The Sheriff's Office
- A process server
- Any person of legal age (18) who is not connected
with the case either as a witness or as a party
- By mailing the copies to the defendant by
registered or certified mail with a return receipt requested
The Notice of Small Claim must be served on the defendant not less
than ten (10) days before the first hearing. A
return of service, or mail return receipt bearing the defendant's
signature, must be filed at or before the time of the
first hearing. You cannot personally serve the claim. Back to Top
What If We Settle?
- In most cases, neither party is one hundred percent right nor wrong.
- You
are encouraged to try to settle your case before trial.
- If you settle
the dispute before the hearing, you must inform the court so the hearing
can be canceled and your case dismissed.
- If the other party agrees to
pay at a later date, you may ask the court for a continuance.
- If the
other party pays before the postponed date, ask the court to cancel the
hearing.
- If you do not receive your money by the time of the continued
hearing, proceed with the case in court.
- If you drop the suit, your
filing fee and service costs are not returned.
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What are the benefits of mediation and what is the Dispute Resolution
Center? Please
click here to learn about the
benefits of mediating your dispute. Back to Top
How Do I Prepare For The Trial?
You can help yourself by being well prepared. To prepare for the trial,
collect all papers, photographs, receipts, estimates, canceled checks,
or other documents that concern the case. It may be helpful to write
down ahead of time the facts of the case in the order that they
occurred. This will help you to organize your thoughts and to make a
clear presentation of your story to the judge. Also, be sure to make a
bench copy of all documents for the judge and another copy for the
opposing party. It is also a good idea to sit through a small claims court session
before the date of your hearing. This will give you first-hand
information about the way small claim cases are heard. Back to Top
What Happens At The Trial?
When you arrive at the court, report to the courtroom in which your case
has been assigned.
When your case is called in the courtroom, come
forward to the counsel table and the judge will swear in all the parties
and witnesses.
Don't be nervous--remember that a trial in small claims court is
informal.
The judge will ask the plaintiff to give his or her side
first, then will ask the defendant for his or her explanation. Be brief
and stick to the facts.
The judge may interrupt you with questions,
which you should answer straight out and to the best of your knowledge.
Be polite--do not interrupt--not just to the judge but also to your
opponent.
Whatever happens, keep your temper.
Good manners and even
tempers help the fair, efficient conduct of the trial, and make a good
impression.
After both sides have been heard by the judge, he or she will normally
announce the decision right then and will sign and hand the parties a
judgment. Back to Top
What If My Opponent Does Not Appear For Trial?
If the defendant fails to appear for trial, the plaintiff will be
granted judgment for the amount of the claim proven in court, plus
costs--provided the plaintiff can show proof of service.
If the
plaintiff fails to appear, the claim is dismissed; however, generally
the court will permit the plaintiff to start over, if good cause for the
non-appearance is shown. Back to Top
How Do I Collect My Money?
A money judgment in your favor does not necessarily mean that the money
will be paid. The Small Claims Court does not collect the judgment for
you. If your appeal is taken and the judgment is not paid within 30 days,
or the time set by the court in a payment plan, you may request (in
writing) and upon payment of a $20 fee, that the judgment be entered
into the civil docket of the court. At that time you may proceed with a
method of collection such as a garnishment of wages, bank accounts, and
other monies of the defendant or an execution may be issued on cars,
boats, or other personal property of the judgment debtor. As a rule,
however, if the defendant does not have any money, you will likely not
collect. Remember, the clerks cannot give you legal advice. You may need
the assistance of an attorney or collections agency at this point.
In
the alternative, you may obtain a transcript of the judgment from
District Court for a $20 fee and file it in Superior Court. Other fees
may be required by Superior Court or the county auditor.
When this is
done, it places a lien against all real estate in the name of the
judgment debtor located in the county. If you receive payment, you MUST notify the court that the judgment has
been satisfied. Back to Top
Can I Appeal A Case If I Lose?
The party who files a claim or counterclaim cannot appeal unless the
amount claimed exceeds $1,000. No party may appeal a judgment where the
amount claimed is less than $250. If an appeal is taken to the superior
court, the appealing party is required to follow the procedures set out
in Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 12.36.
The following steps must be
taken within 30 days of the entry judgment:
- Prepare a written Notice of Appeal and file it with the district
court.
- Serve a copy of that Notice on the other parties, and file
acknowledgment or affidavit of service in district court.
- Pay to the district court a $20 transcript fee.
- Deposit at the district court the $220 Superior Court filing fee
either in cash, money order, or cashier's check payable to the Clerk of
the Superior Court. There may be additional fees that you will need to
pay as set forth by local court rule.
You are also required to post a bond in a sum equal to twice the amount
of the judgment and costs, or twice the amount in controversy, whichever
is greater, (cash or surety) at the district court. When the bond is
filed in the district court, the appellant (person appealing the
decision) may request that the district court suspend enforcement of the
judgment until after the appeal is heard. Within 14 days of filing the Notice of Appeal, the district court clerk
will file the court record at the superior court who will assign a new
number and notify the district court. The district court clerk will
advise the appellant of that number, and the appellant must then contact
the superior court for further instructions. The law allows the prevailing party to recover the costs certifying the
judgment to District Court, filing an abstract of judgment in Superior
Court and any other costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred in
collections. Back to Top
Can I Fill Out a Sample Small Claims Form at Home and Bring it to the
Court? Click here to see and download the Sample Notice of Small Claims
form. While you may NOT file the sample form with the Court, you may use it to
collect all the information you will need when you come to the Court
Clerk's Office to file your Small Claim. Back to Top
Thanks to:
The Administrative Office of the Courts
PO Box 41170
Olympia, WA 98504-1170
For its substantial assistance in the preparation of this form |
