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Small Claims
What if the Defendant Also Has a Claim?
Sometimes the person who is sued will
also
have a claim against the person who
filed
the lawsuit. This claim is called the
Defendant's
Claim. The defendant may file this
claim
in the same lawsuit. This helps to
resolve
all of the disagreements between the
parties
at the same time.
If the defendant decides to file a
claim
in Small Claims Court, that claim may
also
not be for more than $5000. If the
value
of the claim is more than this amount,
the
defendant may either give up the amount
over
$5000 and sue in Small Claims Court
or file
a motion to transfer the case to the
Civil
Division of the Superior Court for
the full
value of the claim.
The defendant's claim must be served
on the
plaintiff at least 5 days before trial.
If
the defendant received the plaintiff's
claim
10 days or less before the trial, then
the
defendant's claim must be served at
least
1 day before the trial. The same methods
for service of process apply as described
above.
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