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Information for Plaintiffs in Small Claims Cases
Filing Your Claim
The
person who files a claim is called the plaintiff. The person you are
filing your claim against is called the defendant. You must file your
claim at the county courthouse in the county where the defendant lives unless
the defendant lives outside the state of Idaho. If the defendant lives outside
Idaho, you must file your claim at the county courthouse in the county where
your claim arose. For example, if your claim is about a car accident, then the
county where the claim arose is the county where the accident happened.
You can get a claim form from the court clerk’s office. The form must be filled
out with a typewriter or printed in black ink. You must fill out the form
completely (except for the case number in the top right corner of the form) and
you must sign the form in front of a notary or a court clerk. If you sign it in
front of a notary, the notary must sign and seal the form.
When you have filled out the claim form, you must give it to the court clerk
and the court clerk will file your claim. You will have to pay a $35 filing
fee. In some counties the filing fee must be paid in cash or money order; in
some counties the court clerk will accept a personal check. In most counties
the filing fee is non-refundable—the court clerk will not give it back to you
for any reason.
When your claim is filed the court clerk will fill in the case number (a
unique number that identifies your claim) at the top right corner of the form.
You should have the case number handy whenever you ask the clerk’s office for
information about your case. The court clerk will give you a copy of your claim
with your case number. Keep this copy—you will need it later.
In some counties you can file your claim by mail. If you want to file by mail,
you should call the court clerk’s office in the county where you will be filing
your claim to find out if you can file your claim by mail and what you need to
do to file it by mail.
Completing the Claim Form - You will need to have the following
information to fill out your claim form:
·
Your name, address, and phone number
·
The name and address of the defendant and, if you
have it or can get it, the defendant’s phone number--if there is more than one
defendant you will need this information for each defendant
·
The amount of money you are asking the defendant to
pay
·
If you are asking for the defendant to return
personal property, a description of the property you are asking for and the
value of the property
·
A short description of the basis for your claim
·
The date your claim arose
Name and Address of the Plaintiff – You must be at least
18 years old to file a claim in small claims court. You must also be the true
owner of the claim. You cannot bring a claim on behalf of someone else except
in very limited circumstances—A parent or guardian can file a claim for a child
under the age of 18 and a court-appointed guardian or conservator can file a
claim for their ward. If the plaintiff is under 18, also list the parent(s) or
guardian(s) of the minor. If you are a court-appointed guardian or conservator,
list yourself as guardian or conservator and the person you are a guardian or
conservator for as ward. For example, Jane Doe, a minor, and John and Mary Doe,
parents of the minor or Lisa Doe, guardian, and Daniel Doe, ward
A corporation can be a plaintiff in small claims court if it is registered with
the Idaho Secretary of State. The claim must be filed by an officer of the
corporation. If you are filing your claim as the officer of a corporation, list
the name of the corporation and your name and title. For example, ABC
Corporation and Michael Doe, president
A partnership can be a plaintiff in small claims court. The claim must be filed
by a partner in the partnership. If you are filing your claim as a partner in a
partnership, list the name of the partnership and your name as partner. For
example, Coal House, a partnership, and Thomas Doe, partner
If you are filing your claim as the owner of an unincorporated business, list
the name under which you are doing business and your own name. For example,
Susan Doe, doing business as Susan’s Repair Shop
If you are filing your claim as the trustee of a trust, list the name of the
trust and your name. For example, Doe Family Trust and Robert Doe, trustee
Notifying the Court Clerk of a Change in Your Address – If your mailing
address changes, you must notify the court clerk in writing of your new address
as soon as possible. The notice does not need to be in a special form—a letter
is sufficient so long as it includes your case number. The court clerk will
need to send you notices about your case and if you don’t give the court clerk
written notice of your new address, notice will be complete when it is sent to
your old address. You should also notify the court clerk in writing if your
telephone number changes.
Name and Address of the Defendant –If the defendant is a minor (a
person under the age of 18), also list the name(s) of the parent(s) or
guardian(s) of the minor. For example, Jane Doe, a minor, and John and Mary
Doe, parents of the minor
If the defendant is a business and the business is a corporation, list the name
of the corporation and the person who is the registered agent of the
corporation. If the corporation is an Idaho corporation you can find out the
name and address of the registered agent by calling the Idaho Secretary of
State’s Office. For example, ABC Corporation and Betty Doe, registered agent
If the defendant is a business and the business is a partnership, list the name
of the partnership and at least one partner. It is better to list each of the
partners. The judge cannot enter a judgment against the partnership unless at
least one of the partners is named and the court cannot enter a judgment
against any partner who is not named. If the partnership has filed a
partnership statement with the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office, you can find
out the names and addresses of the partners by calling that office. For
example, Coal House, a partnership, and Thomas Doe, individually and as a
partner
If the defendant is a business and the business is a sole proprietorship
(the owner is a person doing business but it is not a partnership or
corporation), list the owner’s name and the business name. If you only know the
business name, you may be able to find out the owner’s name and address by
calling the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office. For example, Susan Doe, doing
business as Susan’s Repair Shop
If your claim is against someone who has insurance, you cannot file a claim
against the insurance company. For example, if you were in a car accident and
you want to file a claim because the driver of the other car caused the
accident, you must sue the driver--not the driver’s insurance company.
If you want to file a claim against a government agency or against an employee
of the agency for acts done by the employee acting in the course and scope of
employment, you must first file a claim with the agency. The claim must contain
certain information, be filed at a certain office of the agency, and be filed
within certain deadlines. After a claim is filed with the agency, the agency
has a certain amount of time in which to decide whether to pay or deny the
claim. Also, there are some types of claims from which a government agency is excepted
from liability (types of claims for which a government agency can’t be sued
for damages). A claim against a government agency must be filed in the county
where the plaintiff lives unless the plaintiff lives out of state. If the
plaintiff lives out of state, then the claim must be filed in the county where
the claim arose.
The Amount of Money You Are Asking the Defendant to Pay – The amount of
money cannot be for more than $4,000 (plus the cost of the filing fee and the
cost of giving notice to the defendant).
You cannot avoid the $4,000 limit by filing more than one claim. If you file a second
claim about the same transaction or occurrence, the judge will deny your second
claim. If it is obvious that the second claim is about the same transaction or
occurrence, the judge may give the defendant a judgment against you for any
costs the defendant had because of the second claim. For example, if you are a
landlord, you cannot file one claim for unpaid rent and another for damages to
the rental property.
If you are not sure about the amount of money to ask for, ask for the full
amount that you think is fair and reasonable up to $4,000. You cannot increase
the amount you are asking for unless you file an amended claim for the larger
amount. To file an amended claim you must complete a new claim form and write
the word “AMENDED” next to the word “CLAIM” at the top of the form. You must
file the form with the court clerk and give notice to the defendant of the
amended claim following the same steps for filing and giving notice of your
original claim
Personal Property You Are Asking the Defendant to Return – If the
defendant has personal property (anything other than land or buildings)
that belongs to you, you can use small claims court to ask for the return of
your personal property.
If you are asking for the return of personal property, you must describe the
property in enough detail so that the defendant can tell what property you are
asking for. It is better to describe the property in enough detail so that
someone else would be able to recognize the property when they looked at it.
For example, the make, model, and serial number provided by the manufacturer of
the property you are asking for. If there is not enough space on the claim
form, you can type or write it in black ink on another piece of paper and give
it to the court clerk with your claim form.
You must also write down the value of the property. You cannot ask for the
return of property that is worth more than $4,000 in small claims court. If you
are asking for the defendant to pay you money and to return personal
property, the total cannot be more than $4,000. You cannot avoid the $4,000
limit by filing more than one claim about the same transaction or occurrence.
A Short Description of the Basis of Your Claim – You must describe the
basis for your claim in enough detail so that the defendant will know what you
are suing about and so that the judge will know generally what type of case he
or she will be hearing. No special language is required. For example, if your
claim is about a car accident, you could write “car accident.” If the defendant
wrote you a check and the bank did not pay on the check, you could write “bad
check.” If you went to a shop to have your lawn mower repaired and the repairs
were not done properly, you could write “faulty lawn mower repair.” If you made
a loan to the defendant and the defendant did not pay it back when it was due,
you could write “default on loan” or “overdue on loan.”
The Date Your Claim Arose – You must write down the date your claim
arose. The date can be a “rough” date but you should include at least the month
and year the best that you can remember. For example, if your claim is about a
renter who didn’t pay rent or who damaged the rental property, the date could
be when the rent was due or when the renter moved out. If your claim is about a
landlord who didn’t return your security deposit, the date could be the day you
moved out.
There are laws called statutes of limitations (time limits on filing
claims). There are different time limits for different types of claims and the time
limit is extended in some circumstances. If you file a claim after the time
limit, the judge will deny your claim. The court clerk cannot tell you the time
limit that applies in your case. Generally, you should file your claim within a
year after the claim arose. There are many types of cases in which the time
limit is more than one year and a few in which it is shorter. The judge will
decide at the hearing whether your claim is within the time limit.
