Circuit Court

What kind of claims can be filed?

Small Claims Court is for money debts, personal injury or property damages up to $5,000. That is the maximum amount you can receive in Small Claims Court. If your claim is for more than the limit, you must choose either to reduce your claim and give up your right to recover the excess, or to sue in another Court.

How much does it cost to file?

The fee for filing a Small Claims action is $10, payable to the Teton County Circuit Court in the form of exact change, personal or business check or money order. In addition, and separately, the Teton County Sheriff's Office charges $10, payable in advance in the form of exact change, check or money order, for service of each summons in a Small Claims action. (If you are suing two people in the same case, you will pay $10 each to the Sheriff's Office for service.) This initial fee for the Sheriff covers the first three attempts at service, regardless of where in the County the Defendant is to be served. If a case cannot be served in three attempts, an Alias Summopns can be issued with a new Court date. You will need to provide another $10 service fee for the Teton County Sheriff's Office.

How do I start a suit?

If you are filing a Small Claims suit, you are the Plaintiff, and the person sued is the Defendant. In order to start an action, you must file a Small Claims Affidavit, a copy of which is included with these instructions or available from the Court. This Affidavit explains whom you are suing, for how much money, and briefly why you claim the money is due.

The Small Claims Affidavit and Summons are relatively self-explanatory and can be easily filled in if you read the form. Please type if possible; if you cannot have it typed, you may print in black ink.

The Teton County Circuit Court requires that you supply MAILING ADDRESSES for both Plaintiff and Defendant. This information should be filled in at the top of both the Affidavit and the Summons, on the double lines. You must also supply an exact physical address or location -- residence or employment or both -- where the Defendant(s) can be served with the papers by the Sheriff. Telephone numbers are also required, preferably daytime phone numbers where the parties can be reached during normal 8:00-5:00 hours. If you are filing a single case against two or more Defendants (such as husband and wife), you may want to consider issuing a separate Summons for each Defendant, and paying $10 for each to the Sheriff's Office for service.

If the service information supplied to the Sheriff is insufficient for service to be accomplished, the Sheriff will return the summons as unserved but will keep the fee. A subsequent summons on the same case will require another service fee. For this reason, it is essential that you supply sufficient details for service to be accomplished.

You must fill in both the Affidavit and the Summons. On the Summons, fill in everything except the dates; the Clerk will complete this portion of the Summons.

When you file your Small Claims suit, a hearing date will be set for your trial. Wyoming Court Rules require that service must be made by the Sheriff in no less than three days and not more than twelve days from the date set for the hearing. Therefore, there is a short nine-day Awindow@ during which service must be made; if it cannot be made, the Summons will be returned by the Sheriff as unserved.

Because of the nine-day "window" for service, the best day on which to file is a Wednesday. Be aware that if required information is missing, or if the Affidavit is incorrectly filled out, it may not be accepted for filing.

What is the procedure?

When you file your Small Claims suit, the Clerk will set a hearing date for your case. Small Claims Court is held on Tuesday afternoons in the Teton County Courthouse, located at the corner of King and Simpson Streets in Jackson. The hearing is usually held in the District Courtroom on the top floor of the Courthouse. Occasionally, it is necessary that Court be held in an alternate location; if this is the case, a notice will be posted on the Courtroom door directing you to the alternate location.

The Summons will indicate your hearing date, which will be on a Tuesday which is approximately one to three weeks from the date you file your claim. This hearing date is when you and the Defendant will argue your case in Court before the Judge.

The Clerk will give you a copy of your Affidavit and a copy of the Summons, as well as a copy of both forms along with the original of the Summons, which you will take to the Sheriff=s Office along with your service fee. The Sheriff will make every attempt to serve the copy of the Affidavit and Summons on your Defendant within the nine-day period required. Without actual service, however, your case will be dismissed. It is for this reason that you must be sure of the accuracy of the service address(es) you supply, since you will in effect be throwing away the $10 filing fee and the $10 service fee if the Sheriff cannot serve the suit.

The Sheriff`s Office will serve the copy of the Affidavit and Summons on the Defendant and will return the original of the Summons to the Court. The Sheriff will also send you, the Plaintiff, a notice that the papers have been served. If you have not received notice from the Sheriff by the morning of your Court date, you may call the Court to check on the status of service. If the papers have not been served on or by the Friday before your scheduled Court date, the suit may have to be dismissed and you will have to refile the matter. In some cases, it is possible to change the Court date to the following Tuesday and give the Sheriff`s Office another chance to serve the papers.

How do I prepare for my court date?

The most important thing to do in getting ready for your Court appearance is to know the exact date and time of your trial (hearing) and to be there on time.

You should get together any papers, documents, bills, receipts or pictures which might have something to do with the case, and you should bring them with you when you appear for your trial. You must bring three (3) copies of all material you wish to submit to the Judge as evidence (one copy, preferably the original, for the Judge; one copy for yourself; and one copy for your opposing party). You may also bring witnesses, people who can help explain why you are entitled to the money you are suing for. Make sure your witnesses know the exact date and time for the trial, and then make sure they show up!

If you need to have a witness subpoenaed, in the event that he or she will not appear voluntarily, ask the Clerk for a subpoena. This must be done no less than five (5) days before your trial date. You will need an exact physical address for the witness, and the Sheriff`s Office will charge you $10 to serve each subpoena.

What happens at the trial?

If the Plaintiff does not appear for the trial on the scheduled Court date, the case will be dismissed. If the Defendant does not appear, the Plaintiff will in most instances be awarded a Default Judgment, which means that the Plaintiff has won the case for the amount claimed in the Affidavit (up to the maximum jurisdiction of the Court, plus Court costs), and the money must be paid by the Defendant. Costs comprise the $10 filing fee and the $10 service fee, both of which have been paid in advance by the Plaintiff.

There are no juries at a Small Claims hearing; it is just a simple, informal hearing before the Judge. At the hearing, the Plaintiff will first tell his or her story to the Judge. If you have papers, documents, photos or witnesses to help explain your case, use them (remember that you must have three copies of anything you want to submit to the Judge as evidence). The Plaintiff has the burden or proof, so it is important that you explain to the Judge at the hearing why every penny and every item of the claim is due to you. When the Plaintiff has finished, the Defendant then gets a chance to tell his or her version to the Judge; the Defendant may also use papers, documents, or photos (three copies required) or witnesses. Both parties should be clear and concise; it is wise to have your arguments well thought out in advance. Do not be afraid to talk to the Judge; he is there to be fair to you.

After hearing both sides and seeing their evidence, the Judge may make an immediate decision as to who is right and who is wrong, and who owes whom money. If he announces his decision, the Clerk will also give you (or arrange to mail to you) a copy of the Judgment. If the Judge does not make an immediate decision, he will take the matter under submission and you will be notified later, by mail, of the decision. In this instance, it is necessary that the Court have the correct mailing addresses for both parties.

APPEALS of Small Claims actions are to the District Court and shall be processed pursuant to W.R.A.P.C.L.J. and only on questions of law and not a review of the sufficiency of evidence.

THIS GENERAL INFORMATION HAS BEEN COMPILED TO ANSWER THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SMALL CLAIMS. IF YOU HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS, PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CALL THE CLERK OF THE JUSTICE COURT AT 733-7713.