How do I file a case in small claims court?
The Judiciary has kit with forms and instructions for filing a small claims case and another kit for filing a small claims case for motor vehicle damage. The kits also are available in any New Jersey Special Civil Part Office in your county courthouse.
The summons and complaint can be filed by uploading the documents into the Judiciary Electronic Document Submission (JEDS) system, through the mail or in person at the appropriate Special Civil Part Office (See “Where Do I File a Complaint”). When filing a complaint, you, as the plaintiff, must:
- Give your full name, address and telephone number.
- To ensure proper service of the complaint, give the correct name(s) and address(es) of the person(s) or business(es) named as the defendant(s) in the complaint. It is important that the defendant be properly identified as an individual, a sole proprietorship, a partnership or a corporation.
- State the amount of money for which you are suing.
- State the reason why the defendant(s) owes you money.
- State whether there is any other open court case involving both you and the other party(ies). If there is another case, list which court is handling it.
- Do not provide any party’s personal identifiers in the complaint or in any other submission to the court unless specifically required under law, court order, rule or administrative directive.
- Sign and date the completed form.
- Pay the correct filing and service fees when filing the complaint with the Office of the Special Civil Part.
A personal identifier is a social security number, driver’s license number, vehicle plate number, insurance policy number, active financial account number or active credit card number. You can provide the last 4 digits of a party’s active financial account if it is the subject of the lawsuit and cannot otherwise be identified