small claims court

small claims court
small claims court n: a special court intended to simplify and expedite the resolution of minor disputes involving small claims

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. . 1996.

small claims court
n.
A court that handles matters involving small amounts of money in an informal, inexpensive, and usually fairly quick manner.

The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. . 2008.


small claims court
A state court that resolves disputes involving relatively small amounts of money — usually between $2,000 and $10,000, depending on the state. Adversaries usually appear without lawyers — in fact, some states forbid lawyers in small claims court — and recount their side of the dispute in plain English. Evidence, including the testimony of eyewitnesses and expert witnesses, is relatively easy to present because small claims courts do not follow the formal rules of evidence that govern regular trial cases. A small claims judgment has the same force as does the judgment of any other state court, meaning that if the loser — now called the "judgment debtor" — fails to pay the judgment voluntarily, it can be collected using normal collection techniques, such as property liens and wage garnishments.
Category: Small Claims Court
Category: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits

Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. . 2009.


small claims court
A special court, sometimes called conciliation court, that provides expeditious, informal, and inexpensive adjudication of small claims.

Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.


small claims court
I
A special court, sometimes called conciliation court, that provides expeditious, informal, and inexpensive adjudication of small claims.
 II A state court that handles civil claims for small amounts of money. People often represent themselves rather than hire an attorney.

Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.

small claims court
n.
   a division of most municipal, city or other lowest local courts which hear cases involving relatively small amounts of money and without a request for court orders like eviction. The highest (jurisdictional) amount that can be considered in small claims court varies by state, but goes as high as $5,000 in California. In small claims court, attorneys may not represent clients, the filing fee is low, there is no jury, the procedure is fairly informal, each side has a short time to present his/her case and the right to appeal only permits a trial de novo (a new trial) at the next court level. Often the judge is an experienced lawyer sitting as a pro tem judge. Small claims court is a quick, inexpensive way to settle lesser legal disputes, although the controversies are often important to the participants. The well-known television program People's Court is intended to be a good example of a small claims court.

Law dictionary. . 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

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  • small claims court — ➔ court1 …   Financial and business terms

  • small claims court — n a court where people can make legal claims involving small amounts of money …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • small-claims court — small′ claims′ court n. law a special court established to handle small claims or debts, usu. without the services of lawyers …   From formal English to slang

  • small claims court — ► NOUN ▪ a local court in which claims for small sums of money can be heard and decided quickly and cheaply, without legal representation …   English terms dictionary

  • small claims court — small claims ,court noun count a law court in which people try to get back small amounts of money that they think other people or businesses owe them …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Small claims court — For the Australian series of television movies, see Small Claims (telemovie). Small claims courts have limited jurisdiction to hear civil cases between private litigants. Courts authorized to try small claims may also have other judicial… …   Wikipedia

  • small-claims court — noun : a special court intended to simplify and expedite the handling of small debts or claims * * * /smawl klaymz / a special court established to handle small claims or debts, usually without the services of lawyers. Also called small debts… …   Useful english dictionary

  • small claims court — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms small claims court : singular small claims court plural small claims courts legal a law court in which people try to get back small amounts of money that they think other people or businesses owe them …   English dictionary

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