Can you object in small claims court

You should allow two to three hours for the entire process. If you have a hearing, bring your witnesses. Also bring any pictures, diagrams, account books, bills, receipts, contracts, notes, dishonored checks or other evidence that will help the judge make a decision.

Whatever you present in court will be all the judge knows about your case. If your case is complicated, it may help to give the judge a written summary of your position.

The judge will examine the evidence and question the parties and their witnesses before making a decision. The decision or judgment may be announced then or later. What happens during the hearing? Usually, the court will go through a docket call. Answer when your case is called. Most judges will briefly explain the procedure to be used in your trial. If you are confused about anything he or she says, or if you have other questions, do not be afraid to ask the judge. When the trial begins, the judge will ask you and your witnesses to swear to tell the truth.

The judge will also swear in the defendant. If you are the plaintiff, you will have the first chance to tell your story. Go through your prepared statement. Ask the judge if you may call on your witnesses, and present any documents or photos. After you and your witnesses have told the judge your story, the defendant will have a chance to tell his or her story.

After the judge has heard the facts from both sides, including witnesses, and everyone has asked all their questions, the judge will decide who wins the case and the amount, if any, the winner should receive. If the judge wants more time to think about the case, he or she will tell you when you can expect a decision.

What happens after a decision is made? When the judge makes a decision, he or she will fill out a judgment form identifying the winning party and the award.

The losing party is then expected to pay the sum awarded or to deliver the necessary property as directed. How do I collect my judgment? It is your responsibility to collect your judgment. The court cannot do this for you. It is up to you to find out where the defendant has assets property that can be seized to pay your judgment.

If the plaintiff is suing on an unpaid debt or account, the plaintiff's claim form should itemize and describe each fee and charge that has been added to the original agreed amount, and should also acknowledge receipt of any payments that you have made on the account. If you need to have the hearing postponed to a later date, you can prepare and file a written request to Postpone Trial Small Claims Form SC You must file your request with the clerk of the small claims court, and must send a copy of your request to the other party.

You must file your request no less than 10 days before the trial. Otherwise, you will need to explain why you did not ask earlier, and you may need to go the hearing and ask for the postponement in person. However, no fee is required if you request a postponement either a before the plaintiff has served the plaintiff's claim form on you or b because you weren't served the required number of days before the hearing 15 days if you reside in the county where the claim is filed, or 20 days if you reside outside the county where the claim is filed.

You must have a sufficient reason to receive a postponement of a court hearing date. If the plaintiff did not contact you before filing suit, and you and the plaintiff have not talked about the plaintiff's claim, that may be sufficient reason to postpone the hearing. A postponement will give you and the plaintiff time to meet and discuss the claim, and consider settlement options. The court usually will postpone a scheduled hearing in the following situations: 1 the plaintiff hasn't been able to serve the defendant, 2 the defendant wasn't served a sufficient number of days before the hearing date, 3 the defendant filed a claim of defendant and the plaintiff wasn't served with the defendant's claim at least five days before the hearing unless the defendant was served with the plaintiff's claim less than 10 days before the hearing, in which case the defendant may serve the plaintiff as late as the day before the hearing , or 4 the court determines that the parties desire to engage in mediation or other form of alternative dispute resolution.

If you're unsure whether your particular reason may be a good enough reason for the court to postpone the hearing date, check with a small claims adviser in the your county where the claim was filed. You're entitled to receive at least 15 days' advance notice of the hearing or 20 days' advance notice if you reside outside the county in which the court is located.

If you didn't receive proper advance notice, you're not legally obligated to appear at the scheduled hearing. However, if you received some advance notice but don't plan to appear, it's better to call or write the court and explain why. If the required notice wasn't given to you on time, the court will reschedule the hearing if the court is informed that the rules on service of process were not followed.

Even though you weren't served properly, you still may want to attend. Ordinarily, you shouldn't refuse to attend simply because you received a late notice.

Only if the late notice has made it more difficult to prepare for the hearing or attend it should you object to the late service. For example, the claim may have been dropped at your doorstep, instead of having been personally served on you, or it may have been served on your neighbor, who promptly gave it to you. In both of these cases, service was technically improper, but it didn't make any difference to you, because you knew about the claim and had enough time to prepare.

By attending the hearing, even if service of process was late or otherwise improper, you can present your defense and perhaps end the dispute without further delay. If you don't attend, the plaintiff may incur additional costs to serve you, and, if you ultimately lose the case, you may have to pay these added costs. There is still another reason for you to attend the hearing, even if you were served late.

You also may want to consult with the small claims clerk or small claims adviser about whether the court will allow your witness to testify by telephone.

Some, but not all, small claims judges will allow a witness, especially one who lives a long distance from court, or who will not be available for the hearing, to testify by telephone. Even if the court generally permits telephone testimony from witnesses, you should ask for permission from the court in advance of the hearing.

Always talk to a witness before the hearing. The witness may not see or interpret the facts in the same way that you do, or may have forgotten the key points. Also, if the witness is hostile to you, he or she may do you more harm than good.

You can arrange for the expert to attend the hearing as a witness, or you can ask the expert to prepare and sign a written statement declaration , as described above. The judge also can appoint or consult with an expert. At your request, the small claims court will issue a Small Claims Subpoena for Small Claims Subpoena for Personal Appearance and Production of Documents and Things at Trial or Hearing and Declaration Form SC —a court order that requires the person named in the order and served with a copy of it to come to court to testify as a witnesses.

After you have entered the requested information in the subpoena, the subpoena is issued by the clerk of the court and is a court order. You then need to arrange to serve or arrange for someone else to serve a copy of the subpoena on the witness. Unlike the plaintiff's claim form Form SC , you or anyone else can deliver a copy of the subpoena to the witness. However, that person should be a responsible adult that you can trust to serve the court papers properly.

After giving the witness a copy of the subpoena, the person who delivered the subpoena must complete and sign the Proof of Service Small Claims that is printed on the back of the form. Witness fees for law enforcement officers and government employees are higher. If a witness asks for fees, the witness need not appear in court unless the required fees are paid to the witness. The person who serves the subpoena therefore should be prepared to pay the fees at the time of service in the event that fees are requested.

If fees are requested and paid, be sure to obtain and retain a receipt, which you will need so that you can claim and recover the expense as costs in the event you prevail. The subpoena form gives you two options: You can require the witness to bring the documents to court and testify as a witness, or merely to deliver the documents that you requested to the court.

You need not require the witness to appear at the hearing. After the subpoena is served, the original subpoena with the completed and signed Proof of Service on the back of the form must be filed with the small claims clerk before the hearing date.

Most small claims courts rely on temporary judges sometimes pro tem judges to hear and decide small claims court cases. A temporary judge is an attorney who has been licensed for a minimum of 10 years to practice law in California and who volunteers to assist the court by hearing certain kinds of cases. The temporary judge is required to complete a training program for small claims court judges before hearing cases.

On the day of the hearing, you will be invited to consent or stipulate that a temporary judge, rather than a regular judge or a court commissioner, may hear and decide your case. Before a temporary judge may hear a case, all parties who appear at the hearing must give their consent. Some courts require the parties to sign a written consent form. You are not obligated to consent to a temporary judge. You have a right to have a regular judge or a court commissioner hear your case.

A temporary judge cannot pressure or threaten you into consenting to him or her hearing your case. Before the hearing, the courtroom procedures are explained either by the judge or some other court officer.

Many courtrooms now use videotapes to explain these procedures. The court will then call roll to see which plaintiffs and defendants are present for their hearings. Everyone who will testify in a hearing will be asked to take an oath promising to tell the truth. The court will then hear each case.

While evidence is still presented in those cases, they take less time because there is no opposition. Cases are not always called in the order listed on the court calendar, so be sure to stay in the courtroom. A few days after I moved out, I asked Mr. He wrote me a letter stating that the place was dirty and he was keeping my deposit. Robertson on March 15 setting out my position in more detail. I also have some photographs that my friend, Carol Spann, who is here as a witness, took on the day I moved out.

I believe the pictures show pretty clearly that I did a thorough cleanup. Andrews: "Yes, this is Carol Spann.

She helped me clean up and move on March 7 and 8. Judge: looking at the pictures "Ms. Spann, were you in the house the day John Andrews moved out? Carol Spann: standing "Yes, your Honor, I was—and the day before, too. I helped clean up, and I can say that we did a good job. Not only did we do the normal washing and scrubbing, but we waxed the kitchen floor, cleaned the bathroom tile, and shampooed the rugs. Judge: turning to Mr. Robertson "Okay, now it's your turn to tell me why the deposit wasn't returned.

Harry Robertson: standing "I don't know how they could have cleaned the place up, your Honor, because it was filthy when I inspected it on March 9.

Let me give you a few specifics. There was mildew and mold around the bathtub, the windows were filthy, the refrigerator hadn't been defrosted, and there was dog—how shall I say it—dog manure in the basement. Your Honor, I have brought along Clem Houndstooth as a witness. Houndstooth is the tenant who moved in three days after Mr.

Andrews moved out. Incidentally, your Honor, the place was so dirty that I only charged Mr. Clem Houndstooth: standing "Yes, I do. Robertson asked me to come down and back him up and I am glad to do it because I put in two full days cleaning that place up. I like a clean house, your Honor, not a halfway clean, halfway dirty house. I just don't think that a house is clean if the oven is full of gunk, there is mold in the bathroom, and the insides of the cupboards are grimy.

All these conditions existed at Spruce Street when I moved in. I just don't believe that anyone could think that that place was clean. John Andrews: standing up "Yes, I sure do. First, as to the mildew problem. The house is 40 years old, and there is some dampness in the wall of the bathroom.

Maybe there is a leaky pipe someplace behind the tile. I cleaned it a number of times, but it always came back.

I talked to Mr. Fisk in Mr. Robertson's office about the problem about a month after I moved in, and he told me that I would have to do the best I could because they couldn't afford to tear the wall apart. As to the cupboards and stove, they are both old. The cabinets haven't been painted in ten years, so, of course, they aren't perfect, and that old stove was a lot dirtier when I moved in than it is now, because I can tell you I personally worked on it with oven cleaner for over an hour.

John Andrews: "No, your Honor, it wasn't, but it had been defrosted about three weeks before I moved out, and I thought that it was good enough the way it was. Judge: "Okay, if no one else has anything to add, I want to return your pictures and letters. You will receive my decision by mail in a few days. Now, I have a little surprise for you. The case I just presented is based closely on a real small claims case. As they used to say on Dragnet, "Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.

I spoke to the judge after the court session. Here is how he decided the case. What is clean to one person may be dirty to another. Based on what I heard, I would have to guess that the old tenant made a fairly conscientious effort to clean up and probably left the place about as clean as it was when he moved in, but that the new tenant, Houndstooth, had much higher standards and convinced the landlord that it was filthy.

The landlord may not have needed too much convincing since he probably would just as well keep the deposit. But I did hear enough to convince me that Andrews, the old tenant, didn't do a perfect job cleaning up.