The Magistrate Court of Chatham County is also known as small claims court. A claim can be filed for $15,000.00 or less. If your claim exceeds $15,000.00, the Magistrate Court doesn't have jurisdiction to hear the case but it can be filed in the State Court or the Superior Court. Not only does this $15,000.00 limit apply to a claim filed by the plaintiff, it also applies to any counterclaim filed by the defendant which exceeds $15,000.00.

The party who files a civil suit is referred to as the "Plaintiff" and the party who is sued is referred to as the "Defendant". The claim form should designate the proper plaintiff(s) and defendant(s). Failure to name the proper parties could result in an unsatisfactory judgment.

A claim that is against an individual should be filed in the County of the person's legal residence. When a claim is against a business, the type of business determines where the claim should be filed. If the business is a sole proprietorship, the suit should be filed in the county in which the owner of the business resides. For a partnership, the suit should be filed in the county in which at least one of the owners resides. For a corporation, the suit should be filed in the county where the corporation is doing business or in the county that has designated its registered agent for service with the Secretary of State's office. If the suit is against multiple defendants who live in different counties, you can file in either one of the counties that they reside in.

If you file a claim in the Magistrate Court of Chatham County and it is later determined that the defendant resides in a different county, you can submit a request to have the case transferred to the proper county. You may be required to pay an additional service fee.

In order to file a claim, you must fill out a Statement of Claim form and a Sheriff's Entry of Service form. If there are two or more defendants to be served at different addresses, there is an additional service fee required per address. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

You must list the plaintiff's complete name, address including zip code, and phone number. You also have to list the defendant's correct name and address including the zip code. If the defendant is a company, have their correct legal business name. Next you mark the appropriate box for the type of claim you are filing, suit on a note, suit on an account, damages, or other. You then are required to give a brief description of your claim and the amount you are filing the suit for. You must sign the form in front on a notary public or a deputy clerk in the Magistrate Court. You will be required to show identification such as a driver's license.

The Sheriff's Department will serve the civil suit to the defendant at the address you provide to the Court. If the Sheriff's Department is unable to locate the defendant at the address provided, you can provide the Court with a new address along with an additional service fee. You can also contact a private process server who has been approved by the Court to serve the suit.

The defendant has thirty (30) days from the date of service to file an answer with the Court. If the defendant fails to file an answer within 30 days, they will be in default. The defendant then has an additional fifteen (15) days to file an answer by paying all accrued court cost to open the default.

After the defendant has filed an answer, the Court will schedule the case for a hearing and notify all parties by regular U.S. Mail.

When filing your answer with the Court, you can file a counterclaim. A counterclaim is essentially a Statement of Claim filed by the defendant against the plaintiff. If the counterclaim exceeds the jurisdictional limits of the Magistrate Court, the case will be transferred to a court that has proper jurisdiction. Usually the entire case will be transferred. However, there may be some cases where the plaintiff's claim will remain in the Magistrate Court and the defendant's counterclaim will be transferred separately.

No. The plaintiff pays court costs when the case is filed. However, the defendant may be ordered to pay these costs to the plaintiff if the plaintiff wins their case.

You should bring all persons who have direct knowledge of the facts relate to your case and any documents, photographs, repair bills, receipts, or other physical evidence which you feel would help prove your case.

No. A witness who has direct knowledge of the facts to which they testify must present all testimony in person. If the witness is not physically present in court, under oath, and subject to cross examination, their statements may not be presented to the Court.

You can compel a witness to appear in court by serving a subpoena on them. You can obtain a subpoena from the Magistrate Court. You must have the witness' name and address for service. The subpoena will be served to the witness by the Sheriff's Department. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

Yes. There is a different type of subpoena for documents known as a "subpoena duces tecum". The subpoena should be served on the custodian of the documents being subpoenaed. You can obtain the subpoena from the Magistrate Court. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

After all parties have presented their case in Court, the Judge will usually decide the case and make an announcement of the decision from the bench. If the decision cannot be immediately made, the Judge will hold the case under advisement and when the decision is made, a copy of the decision will be mailed to the parties by the Court.

If the defendant fails to file an answer within forty-five (45) days of service, the plaintiff can request a default judgment. If the claim is for liquidated damages and proper documentation is submitted to the court which proves the claim, a default judgment may be issued. If the claim is for unliquidated damages, the case will be scheduled for a default hearing.

There are numerous steps that can be taken to enforce a judgment such as a bank garnishment, a continuing garnishment of wages, interrogatories, writ of fieri facias and levy.

Garnishment proceedings may be filed immediately if the judgment issued is a default judgment. Otherwise, a period of ten days must lapse before a garnishment can be filed. The correct forms for filing a garnishment can be obtained from this website or from the Magistrate Court Clerk's Office.

A copy of the judgment must accompany the garnishment upon filing if the judgment was obtained from another court. You also need:

• Continuing (Wage) Garnishment:
• Affidavit and Summons of Continuing Garnishment
• Answer of Continuing Garnishment
• Sheriff's Entry of Service form for the garnishee
• Sheriff's Entry of Service form for the defendant
• Regular (Bank) Garnishment:
• Affidavit and Summons of Garnishment
• Answer of Garnishment
• Sheriff's Entry of Service form for the garnishee
• Sheriff's Entry of Service form for the defendant

A continuing (wage) garnishment is good for 195 days from the date of service by the Sheriff's Department.

A regular (bank) garnishment is good for 45 days from the date of service by the Sheriff's Department.

A garnishee must file an answer with the court no later than 45 days, but not sooner than 30 days from the date of service by the Sheriff's Department.

If the garnishee fails to file an answer by the 45th day from the date of service, they still have an additional 15 days in which they can file an answer but they are required to pay court cost in order to open the default. If the garnishee fails to file an answer by the 60th day from the date of service, the plaintiff can request a judgment against the garnishee. The plaintiff can then take steps to collect the judgment from the garnishee.

The principal amount on the judgment may not exceed $15,000.00 when filing a garnishment with the Magistrate Court.

The plaintiff's traverse states that the garnishee's answer is untrue or legally insufficient. The plaintiff may file a traverse no later than 15 days after the answer of the garnishee is filed with the court. The defendant's traverse states that the affidavit of garnishment is untrue or legally insufficient. The defendant may file a traverse at any time before a judgment is entered on the garnishee's answer. The garnishee must withhold funds until the judge rules on the traverse. The funds are held in the registry of the court until the traverse is ruled on. A traverse must be scheduled for a hearing within 10 days of the filing of the traverse.

There must be a landlord/tenant relationship between the parties. The tenant must be either a tenant holding over, a tenant at will, a tenant at sufferance, or having failed to pay rent as it becomes due. The landlord must have made a demand for possession of the premises prior to commencement of the proceedings. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

A dispossessory warrant should be filed in the county where the rental property is located.

Personal service on the tenant of the dispossessory warrant must be attempted. In the event the sheriff cannot serve the tenant personally, the sheriff may serve the dispossessory warrant sui juris, that is, to any person residing at the premises of suitable age and discretion. If the sheriff is unable to obtain personal or sui juris service of the dispossessory warrant, it may be delivered by tack and mail, that is, posted on the door of the premises. On the same day of posting, the sheriff must mail a copy of the dispossessory warrant to the tenant at the tenant's last known address.

Upon service of a dispossessory warrant, the tenant has seven days to file an answer with the Magistrate Court. Failure to file an answer within seven days of service of the dispossessory warrant may result in a writ of possession being issued against the tenant.

If the tenant fails to file an answer with the Magistrate Court within 7 days from service of a dispossessory warrant, the landlord may request a writ of possession by paying the sheriff's service fee to the Magistrate Court. After the Judge has signed the writ of possession, the landlord may contact the Sheriff's Office to set up a time for the eviction. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

When an answer if filed, a court date is given for the following week. The tenant will be given a court date at the time the answer is filed. The notice of the court date, along with a copy of the tenant's answer, will be mailed to the landlord by regular mail.

When the last day to file an answer falls on a weekend or a legal holiday, the answer may be filed with the Magistrate Court by close of the next business day.

No. A landlord may legally remove a tenant and the tenant's property from rented premises only under the dispossessory procedure. If a landlord uses self-help to evict a tenant without a dispossessory warrant, it is a tort for which the tenant may recover damages in a civil action, and a landlord who cuts off utilities may be subject to misdemeanor prosecution under OCGA 44-7-14.1.

Continuing (Wage) Garnishment - A continuing garnishment is a type of garnishment used when the judgment debtor is a wage earner. The amount deducted is based on the defendant's net wages. The continuing garnishment lasts for a total of 195 days from the date of service or until the judgment amount is collected, whichever event shall first occur. If there is still a balance due at the end of the 195 days, the plaintiff can file a new continuing garnishment. A continuing garnishment is filed in the county where the garnishee is located. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

Regular (Bank) Garnishment - A regular garnishment is filed when you are trying to collect the judgment amount from the defendant's bank account, credit union, or from a general contractor. It is good for a total of 45 days from the date of service. It should be filed in the county where the garnishee is located. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

Interrogatories - The purpose of the post judgment interrogatories is to ascertain what assets, if any, the judgment debtor owns to satisfy the judgment. They are sent to the defendant by certified mail. The defendant has 30 days from receipt of the interrogatories to file an answer. If the interrogatories are not answered within 30 days, the plaintiff can file a request for a show cause hearing. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

Writ of Fieri Facias - A writ of fieri facias (usually called a fi.fa and pronounced "fi.fay”) is a document that is issued by the Magistrate Court Clerk's office for the purpose of recording a lien on the judgment debtor's property. After the fi.fa has been recorded in the Magistrate Court, it is sent to the Superior Court so that it can be recorded on the General Execution Docket. A fi.fa is also the legal instrument by which the sheriff of the county may seize the assets of a judgment debtor by way of a levy. After a fi.fa has been paid and satisfied, it is the plaintiff's responsibility to file a cancellation of the fi.fa. Please see the list of filing fees for the fee for this service.

Contact the Court Reporters Office using the Transcript Request form.