Everybody's Guide to Small Claims Court

Win your small claims case!

You don’t need a lawyer to succeed in small claims court if you know how to present your own case. Everybody’s Guide to Small Claims Court provides the information, tips, and strategies needed to sue someone successfully or put up a winning defense. Find out how to:

• assess your case’s value

• mediate an out-of-court settlement

• file and serve papers

• gather supporting evidence

• line up persuasive witnesses

• present a convincing case, and

• collect money when you win.

You’ll find instructions for following the latest small claims court procedures and detailed explanations of the legal requirements for many common lawsuits. 

Cara O’Neill is a legal editor and writer at Nolo specializing in bankruptcy and small claims litigation. Cara authors several Nolo book titles, including How to File for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, The New Bankruptcy, and Everybody’s Guide to Small Claims Court. She also coauthors Legal Research: How to Find and Understand the Law, The Foreclosure Survival Guide, Solve Your Money Troubles, and Credit Repair, and edits several more. Before joining Nolo, Cara practiced law for over 20 years in civil and criminal litigation, bankruptcy, and administrative law. During that time, she served as an administrative law judge, took dozens of criminal and civil cases to jury verdict, appeared before the California Court of Appeals, and taught undergraduate and graduate law courses. She earned her law degree in 1994 from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where she served as a law journal editor and graduated as a member of the Order of the Barristers—an honor society recognizing excellence in courtroom advocacy.