How does small claims court work?

[brandon]

I have been getting numerous scam calls from some company named Versa Debt (google if interested...). They are in violation of several Do Not Call Laws. Under such laws, I am eligible to receive $500 for each time they call me if I take the to court.

So I'm going to sue them. Pro Bono. Should be a fun experience.

Anyway, I live in PA, and this company is based out of Atlanta. In what court would I file my complaint? Pa court, Georgia court? Do i go to the county level? Local level? Is it a federal crime because it is across state lines?

Thanks

[ItsTime]

I believe where the offense happened. So you can file it in your district. I think you might have to take it to a federal court. Call a lawyer. Some lawyers give you a free half hour to talk about your case.

[lester1/2jr]

first there is the theme music, then you walk in as the announcer describes your case. then there's a commercical..

[coyote_sprit]

first there is the theme music, then you walk in as the announcer describes your case. then there's a commercical..

YouTube - Phoenix Wright - Boot to the Head (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFldBVWFgWo)

[InterestedParticipant]

Every American should have to go to small claims court. It's a wonderful experience.

Just take copies of your phone bill showing each call, take proof that you've notified company and requested that they stop calling you (I'm sure law has requirement that plaintiff contact defendant and serve notice prior to any action being taken), and bring excerpt of relevant portions of said law so that you may cite this. Be prepared to give copies to all of the above to Judge Advocate and the Defendant's representative.

If you can prove that they've received notice, and notice is in good order, then be prepared to asked for a specific amount in accordance with the law (which is number of offenses time the penalty per offense).

Good luck. No matter the result, it'll be an awesome learning experiences for around $35 bucks. What a country!

[John E]

If you file in small claims court in PA, you can only enforce the judgement in PA. If the company is located in Atlanta and they have no assets in PA, they can effectively ignore you.

You would have to file in Atlanta or file in Federal court.

[Alawn]

If you file in small claims court in PA, you can only enforce the judgement in PA. If the company is located in Atlanta and they have no assets in PA, they can effectively ignore you.

You would have to file in Atlanta or file in Federal court.

Not true. That is what the full faith and credit clause is for. You just show the judgment to a court in the other state and they will enforce it.

[kpitcher]

I'm currently going to small claims against a person who didn't pay a bill for services. You pay a processing fee, you pay someone to serve them. This amount was actually added to the money awarded when they didn't even bother to show up to court. Default judgement, I win.

Then I waited 21 days to get paid. I didn't, so now I just paid another fee to have them served to discover their assets. This time around they can't ignore it or they'll be in contempt.

It's not hard to do. However you may be out the server fees until they pay up so expect a few hundred out of pocket. Have fun exploring the legal system.

[InterestedParticipant]

It's not hard to do. However you may be out the server fees until they pay up so expect a few hundred out of pocket. Have fun exploring the legal system.
I've always just served them myself. In some situations, a certified mailing of the papers is sufficient for the small claims court. In any event, you don't have to pay a county sheriff to do it for you.

[Zippyjuan]

You might find this interesting:

His website link: http://killthecalls.com/
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7532224

text sizeAAAFebruary 21, 2007
A few years ago, the federal government started the Do Not Call Registry, allowing home phone owners to bar telemarketers from calling. While the list is considered a success, many telemarketing calls still slip through.

That led a man in Sacramento, Calif., to develop a new strategy for fighting back: Take the most persistent callers to small claims court. He has already received about $6,100 in damages from the telemarketers — and set up a Web site to teach others how to do it as well.

For Andre-Tascha Lamme, the last straw came a few months ago. Over the summer he began getting phone calls from mortgage companies — as many as 15 a week. The calls started coming, he says because the rate on his mortgage was about to go up. And someone had passed on his name to dozens of small refinancing companies.

"So what they do is, they call and call and they don't take no for an answer," Lamme says. "I would specifically tell them, 'Please don't call again, I'm not interested in refinancing my mortgage,' and regardless, I'd get a call two days later saying, 'Hey I worked some numbers for your area and I really think that you might be interested.'"

Lamme, a 38-year-old computer consultant who lives in Sacramento, had placed his name on the National Do Not Call Registry and he knew that telemarketers weren't supposed to call him.

But he also knew that under a little known provision of the 1991 federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act he could sue persistent telemarketers in small claims court and actually receive damages for each call.

And so that's what he began doing. He says the companies didn't like it.

So far Lamme has sued four companies, and he has received about $6,100.

"One suit," Lamme says, "they had so many violations that it was a $4,500 amount, and their reaction was, 'Just because you received a few phone calls you didn't want, I'm supposed to pay you money?'"

Jack Gillis of the Consumer Federation of America points out that going to small claims court is time-consuming. And he says not that many people want to do it. So he doesn't think that Lamme's strategy will really deter many telemarketers from making unwanted calls.

But Gillis says the site is a good way for consumers to vent their rage.

"It requires a lot of effort," Gillis says, "but it will pay off in terms of sending a signal to those folks who are violating the Do Not Call list, that there are at least some consumers willing to take action."

Lamme adds that he's simply trying to give people the tools to fight back if they want to.

The whole idea is, I'm sick of the calls, you're sick of the calls. These are your rights. Go learn 'em. Take back your bloody phone from these folks."

It's a message that a lot of people are eager to hear. As of today, Lamme says he has received about 1,300 e-mails from people looking for advice — even though his Web site is less than two weeks old.

He says a lot of the people who contact him are especially annoyed about robo-calls — automated calls received during political campaigns. Lamme says the government needs to make it easier to curb those, as well.

[priest_of_syrinx]

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