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INSTRUCTIONS TO
THE PLAINTIFF |
| 1. |
FILING SUIT.
You are the "plaintiff" in this case and the person you
are suing is the "defendant." The maximum amount that
you may sue for is $7,500.00. Claims must be for the
money damages only. The Small Claims Court cannot be
used to sue for possession of property or to evict a
tenant. You may not sue a governmental entity using
small claims procedures. The debt must be owed to you.
An employee may represent an employer, but you may not
bring an action on behalf of anyone else. The Small
Claims Department has jurisdiction over cases in which
the defendant resides or the debt arises within the
geographic boundaries of the court. You need to know the
amount of the debt, what it is for, and the defendant’s
name, street address and telephone number. If you are
suing a business, call the Department of Commerce at
877-526-3994 (toll free) or http://www.commerce.utah.gov
to obtain the business’ proper name and the name of its
registered agent. |
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You must prepare
the Affidavit, sign it in the presence of a notary
public or court clerk, have your signature notarized,
and file it with the court clerk. The Affidavit should
be typewritten, but will be accepted if legibly
handwritten. You must pay a filing fee of $45.00 for
claims $2,000 or less, $70.00 for claims over $2,000 at
the time you file the Affidavit. If you cannot afford
the filing fee, you can file an "Affidavit of Fee
Waiver" (form available from the court). You will need
to provide relevant financial information and the court
may decide to waive the filing fee. |
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It is your
responsibility to serve the defendant. You can serve the
defendant by:
1. Mailing a copy of the Affidavit to the
defendant by any method that requires the defendant to
sign acknowledging receipt.
2. Giving the Affidavit to the Sheriff’s
department or Constable for service on the defendant,
and paying for the service. |
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The Affidavit must
be served on the defendant at least 30 calendar days
before the trial date. If you serve the defendant by
mail, the date of service is the date that the defendant
signs the receipt If you serve the defendant by mail,
you must fill out and file with the court the Proof of
Service. The Proof of Service Form must be filed with
the court within 10 calendar days of service and must
have the original receipt signed by the defendant
attached. If the Affidavit is served by the sheriff’s
office or constable, the Proof of Service will be filed
by the sheriff or constable. You will need to make sure
the Affidavit has been served and proof of the service
has been filed with the Court Clerk. |
| 2. |
TRIAL. The
clerk will set a trial date and give you a copy of the
Affidavit with the trial date on it. If you fail to
appear at trial, your case will be dismissed "with
prejudice" and you will not be able to re-file your
claim. |
| 3. |
COUNTER
AFFIDAVIT. If the defendant files a Counter
Affidavit against you, trial may be rescheduled. If you
fail to appear at trial after a Counter Affidavit has
been filed, judgment may be entered against you for the
amount requested in the Counter Affidavit. |
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INSTRUCTIONS TO
THE DEFENDANT |
| 1. |
TRIAL. You
have had a lawsuit filed against you. If you wish to
contest the plaintiff’s claim, you must appear at trial
on the appointed day. If you fail to appear at trial,
judgment may be entered against you for the amount
requested. |
| 2. |
PAYMENT. If
you do not dispute the claim, make arrangements with
plaintiff to pay the claim and the court costs. If the
plaintiff obtains judgment and pursues collections
through the court, additional court costs and interest
may be charged to you. |
| 3. |
COUNTER
AFFIDAVIT. If the plaintiff owes you money, you may
file a Counter Affidavit on a form provided by the
clerk. You must file the Counter Affidavit and pay the
proper fee ($35.00 for claims $2,000 or $50.00 for
claims over $2,000) at least 15 calendar days prior to
the trial date. The Court Clerk will mail a copy of the
Counter Affidavit to the plaintiff. If you intend to
file a Counter Affidavit, many of the "Instructions To
The Plaintiff" will apply to you. Read them. |
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ADDITIONAL
INSTRUCTIONS TO BOTH PARTIES |
| 1. |
ATTORNEYS.
Small Claims cases are informal. Parties are encouraged
to represent themselves. However, you may hire an
attorney if you wish. Parties with attorneys will not
get preferential treatment. |
| 2. |
SETTLEMENT.
If the claim is settled prior to the trial date, call
the court for instructions. |
| 3. |
POSTPONING THE
TRIAL. If you want to change the trial date, you
must request a "Continuance." Fill out the Request for
Continuance form available at the court. The court must
receive your Request for Continuance form at least five
calendar days before trial. The Court Clerk can grant a
continuance of up to 45 calendar days. A longer
continuance may be granted only by the judge. Each side
can only get one continuance from the Court Clerk. |
| 4. |
EVIDENCE AND
WITNESSES. It is extremely important that you bring
with you to trial all witnesses and papers necessary to
prove your claim or defense. If you fail to do this, the
case may be decided against you. Strict rules of
evidence do not apply in trials of small claims actions.
Irrelevant or unduly repetitious evidence will be
excluded. A court may receive the type of evidence
commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent persons in
the conduct of their serious business affairs. The judge
may allow hearsay that is probative, trustworthy and
credible. "Hearsay" is testimony about what someone else
said. If at all possible, witnesses should testify about
their first hand knowledge. However, if possible, a
party should have witnesses to testify rather than rely
on hearsay. Claims based entirely on hearsay will
generally be disallowed. Evidence should be offered
through the statements of live witnesses at trial,
except that written statements such as repair bids,
appraisals, repair bills and medical bills may be used
instead of live testimony to establish the amount of a
claim. If you intend to rely on such written statements,
you should bring them with you. Be sure that the
statements are itemized, signed and submitted on the
preparer’s original letterhead. If your case involves a
damaged item, you should give the other party a chance
to inspect the damage prior to trial. |
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If you need the
testimony of a witness who will not attend trial
voluntarily, you should ask the court or your attorney
to issue a Subpoena requiring that person to attend. It
is your responsibility to have the Subpoena served and
to pay the witness fee and service fee. A subpoena must
be served at least 5 calendar days before trial. You may
have a witness appear voluntarily without a subpoena,
but the judge will not continue the trial if the witness
fails to appear. |
| 5. |
JUDGEMENT.
If judgment is granted, the winning party has the right
to enforce the judgment. The losing party may be
required to testify regarding assets and income. A lien
can be placed on the losing party’s property, and
non-exempt wages, bank accounts, stocks, and other
assets can be seized and sold by the sheriff or
constable. A judgment accrues interest and the
prevailing party may be entitled to recover court costs
accruing after judgment. A judgment must be collected or
renewed within 8 years of the date it is granted or it
expires. When a judgment is paid, the winning party must
file a Satisfaction of Judgment with the court. |
| 6. |
APPEAL.
Either party may appeal a Small Claims judgment within
30 business days (not counting weekends or holidays) of
the entry of judgment. A Notice of Appeal must be filed
with the court that issued the judgment and the
appropriate fee paid. The notice of appeal automatically
suspends the judgment, and the winning party may not
attempt to collect the judgment. |
