About and method

Small Claims Limits sets out the basic small claims rules in each US state: the most you can claim, which court hears the case, the filing fee, whether lawyers can appear, how appeals work and how long you have to sue. We are independent and we are not lawyers. Nothing here is legal advice.

How we check facts

• Each fact must come from the state statute, a court rule or an official court or government page. Where an official site could not be read, we use a copy of the statute text from a reputable legal publisher and mark it "secondary".
• A fact we have not confirmed shows as "Not yet confirmed". We never fill a gap with a guess or a figure from memory.
• A state is published only when its limit and most other facts are confirmed. Others are listed as in progress.
• Filing fees are often set by each county. Where that is so, the page says so and names the court the fee came from.
• Where a law has passed but not yet taken effect, we show the current rule and the change with its start date.

Corrections

If a rule has changed or we got something wrong, tell us the page and the official source and we will check and correct it with the date. We never accept payment to change, add or remove anything.

Updates

We recheck each state at least once a year and when a legislature changes its small claims law. Last checked 29 October 2026.