Unpaid contract work
$6,400
Judgment in
31 days
Independent contractor in Oakland filed against a general contractor who had withheld final payment. Full judgment plus filing costs awarded.
Alameda County, CA
Small Claims Court · $249
A courtroom you can actually win in.
Most small-claims filers lose on paperwork, not on the merits. Our prep packet is the court-ready packet built by people who file these cases every week — for every county in every state.
- County-specific forms
- Hearing-day brief
- Evidence checklist
Case SU-26-1142
Halsey Contracting, LLC
- APR 05, 11:40
Intake complete
Dispute & evidence collected
- APR 06, 09:02
Packet assembled
Forms tailored for Alameda County
- APR 08, 13:27
Filed at clerk
Case # SC-26-00891
- APR 11, 16:15
Service of process
Return of service filed
- 5LIVE
Hearing scheduled
May 9 · 9:30 AM · Dept 24
As seen in
The New York Times
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Bloomberg
The Atlantic
WIRED
Why small claims works
The cheapest, fastest, and most effective courtroom in the country.
Small claims was designed to give people a direct path to justice — without attorneys, without retainers, without months of waiting. What it was not designed to do is coach you through the paperwork.
The courtroom is built for you.
Small claims is the one venue where individuals and small businesses can represent themselves without a lawyer. Filing fees are modest, procedures are streamlined, and most hearings are resolved in a single session.
Preparation beats pedigree.
Judges do not care how well you speak. They care whether your paperwork is correct, your evidence is organized, and your dollar amount is supported. Prep is the whole game.
You are not doing this alone.
Our small claims packet is built from the playbook of attorneys and paralegals who file cases every week. Every form is pre-checked against your county's clerk rules.
74%
Judgment rate for prepared self-represented filers
$10k
Median small-claims limit across all 50 states
24h
From intake to packet ready-to-file
50/50
States and every county in each state
What is in your packet
The one packet that holds the whole case together.
Every filer who walks in without this is guessing. Every filer who walks in with it has done ninety percent of the work the court actually cares about.
- Every court form your county requires
- Service-of-process instructions step by step
- Evidence organization checklist
- Hearing-day brief with talking points
- Filing-fee waiver forms when eligible
- Collections playbook after judgment
- Email support until your hearing
Packet · Alameda County · Case SU-26-1142
SC-100 · Plaintiff's Claim & ORDER● Ready
SC-104 · Proof of Service● Ready
Exhibit A · Invoice history (14 pages)● Indexed
Exhibit B · Text message record (6 pages)● Indexed
Exhibit C · Contract & amendments (9 pages)● Indexed
Hearing-day brief · 4 pages● Written
Collections playbook · Post-judgment● Included
Start to judgment
Three steps, one prepared filer.
No legalese. No guesswork. Every step of the filing, service, and hearing is spelled out for your exact county.
Step 01
Answer the intake.
Ten minutes. Dispute facts, damages, your county, the defendant. We pull in everything from your demand letter case if you already have one.
Typical time: 10 minutes
Step 02
We assemble your packet.
Every form the clerk needs, filled out correctly, with your case facts. Evidence index. Service-of-process instructions. Filing-fee waiver forms when eligible.
Ready in: 24 hours
Step 03
Walk into court prepared.
Hearing-day brief with the exact points to raise, the numbers to cite, and the evidence order. Written so you never lose your place under pressure.
Average outcome: 74% judgment for filer
Filed with Sue, won in court
A small sample of recent judgments.
Every case below was filed by a Sue.com customer who used our small claims prep packet. Case numbers and full names omitted for privacy.
Tenant damages
$3,150
Judgment in
47 days
Landlord in Austin recovered unpaid rent and property damages. Hearing-day brief pre-organized the lease, photos, and text-message record. Default judgment.
Travis County, TX
Auto repair dispute
$1,820
Judgment in
22 days
Car owner in Queens recovered a full refund for a failed engine rebuild. Judge cited the packet's evidence index in the ruling.
Queens County, NY
Security deposit
$5,675
Judgment in
38 days
Tenant in Miami-Dade filed against a property management company. Recovered deposit plus statutory penalty under Florida Statutes § 83.49.
Miami-Dade, FL
Customer stories
From filing to judgment.
Rated 4.9 out of 5 across thousands of prepared filers.
★★★★★
“The small claims prep packet walked me through every form. The judge complimented how organized my case was.”
Diego N.
Landlord · Austin, TX · Recovered $3,150
★★★★★
“Recovered more in one week with Sue than a collections agency got me in nine months. A fraction of the cost.”
Priya K.
Consultant · Jersey City, NJ · Recovered $11,900
★★★★★
“I walked in nervous and walked out with a judgment. The hearing-day brief was the difference.”
Marcus L.
Contractor · Oakland, CA · Recovered $6,400
Common questions
Before you file.
What is small claims court?
Small claims is a simplified state court designed for disputes below a statutory dollar limit (typically $2,500 to $25,000, depending on the state). There is no requirement to be represented by an attorney, procedures are streamlined, and most hearings resolve in 15 to 30 minutes.
What is included in the Small Claims Prep packet?
County-specific filing forms completed with your case facts, a step-by-step filing guide, an evidence organization checklist, service-of-process instructions, a hearing-day brief with talking points in order, and email support within one business day until your hearing.
Do I need a demand letter before filing?
Most states do not require one, but every judge we have worked with prefers to see that you tried to resolve the dispute first. We can bundle a demand letter with your prep packet for no extra charge when you upgrade from our Demand Letter product.
How do I know if my dispute qualifies for small claims?
Small claims handles money damages under your state's dollar limit. It does not handle evictions, divorces, class actions, or cases requiring injunctive relief. Our intake asks you a handful of questions and flags it immediately if your case does not fit.
What is the filing fee?
Filing fees vary by state and claim amount — typically $30 to $75. We tell you the exact fee for your county during intake and include the fee-waiver application if you qualify for a hardship exemption.
What if the defendant does not show up?
That is called a default judgment — and it is the most common outcome in small claims. The court awards you the full amount requested. Our hearing-day brief tells you how to request the default if the other party fails to appear.
Can I collect the money after I win?
Winning a judgment and collecting on it are two separate things. Our packet includes a collections playbook: wage garnishment, bank levy, property liens, and debtor examinations — specific to the laws of your state.
Is this legal advice?
No. Sue is a self-help legal platform, not a law firm. Every form and brief is reviewed by licensed attorneys for accuracy, but the attorney-client relationship is between you and any attorney you choose to hire.
File it right the first time
Walk in prepared.
Your packet is ready in 24 hours. One price. County-specific forms, hearing-day brief, collections playbook — everything a judge expects to see.