City Court employees are here to help you, but cannot give legal advice or do your work for you.


If there is any investigation necessary, you have to do it yourself or get someone to do it for you. Also, if you need legal advice, you should contact an attorney even though you handle your own case.

 

Suits Filed In Small Claims Court 
Suits which may be properly filed in Small Claims Court include: contractual disputes, actions for money, damages based on injury caused by another person, actions for possession of personal property excluding real estate and eviction proceedings. Common consumer complaints which can be resolved in Small Claims Court involve: repair problems, breach of warranty, defective products, unreturned deposits on apartments, undelivered goods, insurance claims and damage to property by cleaners or movers.

YOU MUST PROVE YOUR CASE

It is your obligation to bring all necessary WITNESSES, DOCUMENTS, CONTRACTS, LETTERS, PICTURES, BILLS OF SALE, OTHER WRITINGS AND ANY OTHER EVIDENCE that you want considered by the Court.

 

This is for informational purposes only. Should you have need of legal advice you should contact an attorney even if you intend to handle your own claims.

 


Small Claims Court

Small Claims Court is a division of City Court where you may sue to resolve minor disputes or to collect small sums of money which are owed you. The amount of the money for which you may sue in Small Claims Court is currently limited by law to $3,000.00

Using Small Claims Court is one of your rights as a citizen. Individuals may bring suit on their own without having to hire a lawyer. In Small Claims Court the technical rules of evidence are relaxed, and all relevant, including hearsay is admissible, provided the Judge is satisfied of its reliability and she has enough competent evidence on which to base her judgment.

A person who sues in Small Claims Court waives the right to a jury trial and the judgment of the court may not be appealed by either party. Though procedures in Small Claims Court are relatively informal you must still prove by competent evidence that the defendant owes you the money you are suing for.

Where To File A Suit
To file a Small Claims Suit you must come to the City Court located in the Justice Department Building at 303 East Thomas Street, Hammond Louisiana.


Click here for a Statement of Claim and Citation in PDF format.
If you do not have Adobe Acrobat you can download it for free.




















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