SC-100: Plaintiff's Claim and ORDER to Go to Small Claims Court
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File SC-100 with Ezel
Fill SC-100 with Ezel
AI-assisted intake, completeness review, and a court-ready PDF for SC-100 only. Print, sign in pen, file yourself.
What Ezel does with SC-100
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What is SC-100?
California small claims complaint. Use this to sue an individual or business for up to $12,500 (individuals) or $6,250 (businesses); common uses include suing a landlord for a wrongfully withheld security deposit, recovering money lent to a friend, or unpaid invoices. No attorneys at the hearing. Ezel currently supports the common case: one plaintiff, one or two defendants, no public-entity claim.
What happens if you miss the deadline: If the statute of limitations expires before you file, the court will dismiss your claim as untimely.
How to file
- Filing fee
- Tiered by claim amount per Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 116.230(b): $30 for claims of $1,500 or less; $50 for claims more than $1,500 and up to $5,000; $75 for claims above $5,000 (capped at the $12,500 small-claims jurisdictional limit). Plaintiffs who have filed more than 12 small claims in California within the prior 12 months pay $100 per § 116.230(d), regardless of claim size. FW-001 (fee waiver) is available to plaintiffs who qualify under Gov. Code § 68632.
- Filing method
- in-person, mail, efile (county-specific; many California counties accept e-filing for small claims, others require in-person)
- Filing deadline
- SC-100 itself has no deadline. The deadline comes from the statute of limitations on the underlying claim. CCP § 337 sets 4 years for breach of a written contract; § 339 sets 2 years for oral contracts and most personal injury claims; § 340 sets 1 year for libel and slander. Suing a public entity requires a Government Claim filed within 6 months of the event under Cal. Gov. Code § 911.2 BEFORE any SC-100 is filed; missing that step is a hard dismissal. Security-deposit claims under Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5 are treated as written contracts (4-year SOL) measured from the day the deposit was due back (21 days after move-out).
- How to serve
- After the clerk issues the SC-100 with a trial date, the plaintiff must serve each defendant. Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 116.340 lists the permitted methods: by sheriff or marshal; by any non-party California resident over 18; by certified mail with return receipt (the clerk handles the certified-mail option for a small additional fee); or by registered process server. Per § 116.340(b), service must be completed at least 15 calendar days before the trial date if the defendant lives in the same county, or 20 days if the defendant lives outside the county. The person who served the defendant files a proof of service form (SC-104 family) before the trial date.
- Wet signature
- Yes, sign in pen after printing.
- Notarization
- No
- Original and copies
- One signed original to the clerk plus one copy per defendant. The clerk schedules the trial date on the original and issues conformed copies for service. The plaintiff serves a conformed copy on each defendant.
Common pitfalls
Two patterns the AI review must catch for SC-100. (1) Wrong fee tier: a $5,001 claim paid at the $50 tier is rejected at intake; reconcile claim_amount with the tier in § 116.230(b). (2) Late service: serving 14 days before trial (one day short of the in-county minimum in § 116.340(b)) lets the defendant get a continuance, effectively burning the trial date. Both deserve blocker severity when the relevant facts are present in the answer set.
Don't memorize the rules. Ezel walks you through SC-100 field by field, flags what the AI review treats as a blocker, and renders a court-ready PDF.
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Field-by-field guidance
We've mapped every field on SC-100: what it asks, what counts as a blocker, what trips most filers up. Ezel applies all of it as you fill. Plain-English questions in, court-ready PDF out.
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The court name (county and courthouse) must appear on every paper filed. Without it, the clerk cannot file the claim.
The form prints 'Case Name' as a clerk-filled field. Plaintiff is not required to write it; the clerk assigns the case name when accepting the filing.
Plaintiff's name must appear in the case caption AND in item 1. Without it, the court cannot identify who is suing.
Phone number is part of the required caption block. The court uses it to reach the plaintiff about scheduling and filing issues.
Plaintiff's address is required so the court (and defendant) can reach the plaintiff.
Required as part of the plaintiff's address.
Required as part of the plaintiff's address.
Required as part of the plaintiff's address.
Email is explicitly marked optional on the form.
Defendant's name must appear in the caption AND in item 2. The court will not issue a summons against an unnamed defendant.
Defendant phone is helpful for service but not strictly required.
Without a defendant address, the plaintiff cannot serve the summons. The court will not proceed without service.
Required as part of the defendant's address (for service).
Required as part of the defendant's address.
Required as part of the defendant's address.
The claim amount drives jurisdiction. Natural persons may sue for up to $12,500 (since Jan 1, 2024). All other plaintiffs (LLCs, corporations, partnerships) are capped at $6,250. A claim above the limit must either be reduced or filed in regular civil court.
The court needs to know why the defendant owes money. Vague entries ('they owe me') will be rejected by the clerk or by the judge at the hearing.
The form requires the plaintiff to show how the amount was calculated. For a security deposit, that's the withheld amount. For lost wages, hourly rate × hours. For property damage, repair quotes or invoices.
Plaintiff must check at least one venue basis. If none is checked, the clerk may reject the filing or the defendant can move to transfer to a proper county.
ZIP code where the incident occurred. Helps the court verify venue is proper for the courthouse selected.
Plaintiff must make a pre-suit demand for most claims. Vehicle accidents are exempt. If 'no' is checked without the vehicle exception, the judge may dismiss for failure to demand.
Suing a public entity requires a Government Claim filed within 6 months of the event. If 'yes' is checked but no claim was filed, the case will be dismissed. The form requires the date the claim was filed.
The court must know the plaintiff's military status to apply SCRA protections (e.g., automatic stays for active-duty defendants , though this question is about the plaintiff).
Plaintiffs who have filed more than 12 small claims in California in the prior 12 months pay a higher filing fee. The court asks so it can charge the right tier.
The signature block prints 'I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the information above is true and correct.' The date completes that declaration.
Sources
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