Small Claims Form | Justice Court Form | Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) affidavit |
Small Claims Release of Judgment | Justice Release of Judgment Motion to Dismiss
Request for Abstract of Judgment | Civil Appeal Bond | Small Claims/Justice Court Answer

JURISDICTION

Small Claims filing fee: $91.00 ($31.00 Court Cost, $60.00 service fee in Denton County) A Small Claims Court Suit is a civil suit for money damages only (you may not recover personal property).

Justice Court filing fee: $91.00 ($31.00 Court Cost, $60.00 service fee in Denton County)  A Justice Court Suit is a civil suit for money damages, and foreclosures of mortgages and enforce liens on personal property.  

The amount of controversy must not exceed $10,000, interest included. You may not diminish the amount of your claim in order to qualify for the jurisdiction limits of this Court.  For example, if your evidence shows that you sustained $13,000 in damages, you cannot tell the Court that you are “willing to take $10,000.”  This will result in your claim being dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

VENUE

In all small claim/justice suits, the defendant (s) has the right to be sued in the county and precinct in which they reside.  The only exception is if the work is done in the precinct where it is filed.

PARTIES TO THE SUIT

Plaintiff
This is the party that is instituting the suit.  Only the individuals or companies named at the top of the Petition as Plaintiffs may collect a Judgement in favor of the Plaintiff.  At trial, the Plaintiff must prove with a preponderance of credible evidence that they have a claim against the Defendant.  

Defendant
This is the party that is being sued.  It is the burden of the plaintiff, and it is important to understand that for any potential judgement you may receive to be valid, it is necessary for you to sue the defendant in his/her proper legal capacity, of which there are typically three. They are as follows:

• Individual:  Where an individual is responsible to you for damages he/she may have caused you as an individual.
   

• Proprietor or Partnership: A business that is not incorporated, but does have on file with the County Clerk an assumed name e.g. John Smith d/b/a Greenhouse Supplies.  To determine whether or not this person has filed an assumed name, you would contact the County Clerk’s office in the County where the company is located
   

• Corporation:  If the business that has injured you is incorporated, you must contact the State Comptroller’s Office at (800) 252-1386, or the Secretary of State at (512) 463-5555.  Ask for the name and address for service to the Registered Agent for Service of the corporation (the President or Vice-President will also work).  This is the person who is authorized to be served with lawsuits for this corporation.  When completing your complaint, the name of the Defendant should read, for example: ABC Corporation by serving John Smith, Registered Agent”.

AFTER SUIT IS FILED

SERVICE OF CITIATION

After you have filed your Petition, the court will issue and forward the Citation (s) to the Constable’s office you have indicated for service on the Defendant (s).  Although the Citation will leave the Court promptly, it can take several weeks or more for the Citation to be personally served.

ANSWER

Once the Citation has been served on the Defendant, the Defendant must file a written Answer to the suit on or before the Monday following the expiration of ten (10) days from the date of service.  If he/she fails to do so – a Small Claims case will be set for a Hearing – a Justice Court case will be set for a default hearing.  If the Defendant fails to appear, you will be asked to briefly state the facts of your case and present written itemization of your damages.  You must be prepared to present a written itemization of your damages.  The Court will not “figure out” your  damages for you.

REPRESENTATION

In Small Claims Court or Justice Court, a party may represent himself regardless if he is part of a proprietorship or corporation. Please be aware that the Texas Rule of Evidence and Texas Rules of Civil Procedure are in effect in Justice Court suits, but not in Small Claims Court suits. Based upon this, one party may find themselves at somewhat of a disadvantage if there is counsel on one side and not the other.

TRIAL PREPARATION

WITNESS

If there are witnesses, who will not come to Court voluntarily, you may come to Court and ask for a Subpoena to be prepared and served to secure their presence in Court. This should be done in a timely manner prior to trial to allow for service. Subpoenas may be obtained at any time prior to trial, and we offer no guarantees that service will be obtained. Successful service of witness subpoenas is your responsibility.

EVIDENTIARY SUBPOENAS

If the Defendant or any other witness has documentation that you do not have that is necessary to prove your case, you may have the person who has control of the evidence subpoenaed to bring the documentation to Court. The items you want must be listed and attached to the Subpoena.

There are other means of discovering information prior to trial that can be explained to you by an attorney.

JURY

If you desire a trial by jury, you must pay a jury fee of $5.00 at least two working days (48 hours) prior to trial.  Requests for a jury trial ordinarily require the trial date to be reset.  If you have a jury trial, you can expect the actual trial to last several hours longer than a bench trial. (A bench trial is where the case is heard by the Judge) 

TRIAL

If the Defendant files an Answer, your case should be set for trial within approximately four weeks after the Answer is received by the Court, approximately 75 days for Justice Court suits unless discovery is involved.  You will receive written notice of your Court date.  If you change your address or phone number, notify the Court immediately.  Appear in Court on the date and time indicated in your notice.  Be sure to bring all of your documents that you may need to present at trial.

MOTIONS FOR CONTINUANCE

All motions for continuance (resetting of the Court date) must be in writing and received by the Court no later than 8 working days prior to your Court date. Weekends are not included. If less than eight days both parties must agree.

In Small Claims Court, each party will be entitled to reset on request "only for good cause shown" (Gov’t Code 28.033). This Court permits one reset for good cause for each party.

APPEAL AFTER JUDGEMENT

TIME TO APPEAL

Either party has ten (10) days in which to appeal.  You must file an Appeal Bond with the Court on or before 4:30 p.m. on the 10th day after the judgement date.  Do not wait until the last minute to process your Appeal. There is a $16.00 filing fee.

• Telephone the Court and find out the amount of the Appeal Bond required.
    

• Have a Surety Bond for the Appeal Bond.  The Court can not tell you how to fill out the paper work, you are responsible for having the correct information.

The Court will then prepare a transcript of the pleading on file in your case and send it to the County Probate Court at Law.  All Court contact from this point on will be with the Denton County Probate Court (940) 565-8519.

COLLECTION OF JUDGEMENT

If you receive a Judgement against the Defendant, and the Defendant does not file a Motion for New Trial within five (5) days, or does not Appeal, or pay the Judgement within ten (10) days, there are various remedies available to you in attempting to collect the Judgement due to you. The Justice Court does not assist you in collecting Judgements.

ABSTRACT OF JUDGEMENT

You may obtain an Abstract of Judgement any time after the 10th day from the date of Judgement from the Court for $5.00 per Abstract.  The purpose for filing an Abstract of Judgement is to put a lien against any real property in the defendant’s name.  If the defendant sells any real property within ten years from the date of judgement, the amount of judgement must be paid plus interest.

The Abstract may be filed in the office of the County Clerk in any County where you think the Judgement Debtor may own property. The following are nearby County Clerk Offices:

There is a $11.00 recording fee for each county that an abstract is filed in. If there is a title search on any real property owned by the Judgment Debtor within the next ten (10) years, your Judgment will show up as a lien against the property. If the debt becomes satisfied you should provide the Judgment Debtor with a Release of Lien for the Judgment Debtor to file in the County Clerk’s office where you have filed the Abstract in order to remove the cloud on any title. The cost for filing a Release of Judgment Lien is $15.00 first page, $4.00 each additional page, and is solely the Judgment Debtor’s responsibility to file this Release of Lien.

WRIT OF EXECUTION

If the Defendant does not Appeal, you may obtain a Writ of Execution any time after the 30th day from the date of Judgement. A Writ allows a Sheriff or Constable to try and seize certain non-exempt property from the Defendant. If property is seized, an auction is held and the proceeds from the sale satisfy the Judgement. The cost for this Writ is $155.00 in Denton County ($5.00 to file and $150.00 for service). Before you purchase a Writ of Execution, you may want to contact the Constable in that County and discuss with them whether or not your Defendant has property that is subject to execution. You can contact Denton County Constable Precinct 3, Jerry Raburn at (972) 434-4770.

WRIT OF GARNISHMENT

A Writ of Garnishment is a new lawsuit and is a complicated procedure for which it is recommended you seek an attorney’s advice. The cost for this Writ is $121.00 in Denton County ($31.00 to file + $5.00 writ fee + $85.00 for service).

  We will be happy to answer any procedural questions; however; we cannot answer legal questions.