Sue the Rascals! Be a plaintiff in court without the services of a lawyer

Although Abraham Lincoln is said to have remarked, “Any man who chooses to represent himself in court has a fool for a client,” the average citizen can file a lawsuit and represent himself with an excellent chance of success.

It’s certainly not a tactic for everyone, of course. An aspiring amateur litigator should realize that filing a lawsuit will likely result in a seemingly endless series of moments of anxiety, apprehension, and uncertainty. This writer, for example, despite his many years as a career salesman and public speaker, has always felt a rush of nervousness when his name is mentioned as the Plaintiff.

Why would an aging retired man like this writer want to get involved in court settings? This is a valid question that I hope to answer in this article. My first lawsuit involved a major internet icon who ignored my request to terminate an internet provider service contract. They insisted that I continue with the monthly payments throughout the year.

For a day or so I thought about hiring a lawyer, but hourly charges of $500.00 or more made it an impractical, if not impossible solution. Several attorneys insisted on payment of $3,000.00 immediately just to file a lawsuit. Most of my friends advised me to “take the loss and be done with it”.

But this harsh display of corporate arrogance infuriated me. Such a willingness to ignore my carefully documented termination of his services was an outrage. But what could you do about it with the cost of litigation as a barrier?

He had heard of Small Claims Court. Its use would possibly allow me to contest this capricious action without the expense of a lawyer. The concept intrigued me! I was elated at the prospect of doing it. For a few dollars I could force an uncaring, anonymous bureaucrat to justify an outrageous decision in my local courthouse.

But I did not rush to file a lawsuit. For one, I needed to know more about its chances of being useful, and what risks, if any, might be involved in such an endeavor.

My first move was to visit my local courthouse to view some civil lawsuits in progress as a visitor. While this can be an interesting learning experience, it can also be a tedious and time-consuming task. In any case, one learns a lot just by being there and watching the sequence of events. Even the most trivial and boring cases can often include a bit of knowledge that could be valuable to an aspiring Litigator.

The act of filing a lawsuit is not that complex. A person takes a dispute involving an exact amount of money to his local court, to the clerk’s office of a specific court. In Alabama it’s Circuit. In Tennessee it is the General Sessions. Court administrative staff are generally helpful in completing your paperwork, but their employees are strictly prohibited from offering legal advice of any nature.

The court paperwork requires listing the Defendant’s address where official service of a pending lawsuit can be delivered — “to be served” in legal terms. This matter is usually handled by deputy sheriffs or, increasingly, by independent process servers.

If the disagreement is between the Complainant and an individual, said “service” must be directed to the residence. If Joe is the owner of Joe’s Garage, documentation should be addressed to Joe, his full name with his middle initial, who operates Joe’s Garage as a sole proprietor.

It is a different matter if the Defendant is a corporation. This is because a corporation is a legal entity by law with all the rights and responsibilities of a human citizen except voting and getting married. As such, you must be represented in court by an attorney.

The exact address of a corporate defendant is not an issue if it is a local business, but some businesses may have their products in local stores but do not have a local address. Or suppose you are an internet entity that is headquartered in a far away city?

So an obvious question! To whom and where does legal paperwork go to corporate entities when a correct address is not readily available?

Fortunately, all states require a corporation doing business within their borders to appoint a corporate agent with their Secretary of State’s office. A prospective Plaintiff need only call this office to obtain this critical information for court paperwork.

The Claimant completes the form listing their reasons for thinking their claim is fair. A case number is assigned. A calendar day in court is selected, usually at least six weeks later, and a hearing is scheduled for the lawsuit, “in the court docket” in legal terms.

The filer (now the Plaintiff) contributes between $85 and $100 or so to secure payment of court costs and fees that are added to the amount in dispute.

Before the court date arrives and the docket is called, the plaintiff must prepare and be ready in all respects to present an effective argument using simple words and phrases. This writer, for example, has found it helpful to prepare written notes in preparation for “what to say” in his opening remarks.

Although this critical task does not require the oratorical skills of a successful politician, an aspiring Plaintiff must present his case only in a public court. He would advise anyone to tell the absolute truth but make his version as attractive as possible because that is what the opposition will do.

A potential litigator should be encouraged to know that most users of small claims court have little or no experience in law or public speaking. A college professor or Joe Sixpack can be a Plaintiff. Although a college degree can be helpful, it’s certainly not a necessity. The author of this article, for example, dropped out of college.

Be careful with the use of humor. It’s risky even if it’s charming. Avoid using legal phrases you hear on television. Be prepared for stage fright or some degree of nervousness. I have often found it helpful to visualize the packed courtroom as a gathering of people who are not as sure of pending events as I am. Better yet, try to think of the crowd present clad only in their underwear.

Surprisingly, at least some small claims lawsuits involve only small sums of money. For example, one of my lawsuits involved a modest amount of less than fifty dollars while another was only $19.95.

Sometimes the hearing will start right away in the large courtroom where the docket was called. At other times, if the court is overcrowded with a large caseload, the litigants will be escorted to another courtroom where a different judge awaits them.

What about witnesses whose testimony might be helpful? In most cases, a Plaintiff simply asks someone to appear in court and be ready to speak on her behalf. An “expert witness” is paid a fee for her appearance as a private matter.

What happens if a helpful witness is reluctant or simply unwilling to appear? Such a witness may be “surrendered with a subpoena” compelling him to appear under threat of legal action. The additional charge for this service is modest: around $28, in my experience, added to the amount of money in dispute.

I am not a rowdy person who seeks confrontation as a way of life. My lawsuits have always been directed at LARGE Companies that have shown their willingness to treat me as a helpless victim.

By using such tactics, these companies assume that the high cost of litigation will force a person to accept an offer that is surely unfair and too favorable for them. I encountered this same attitude again when an executive from a major trucking company offered me $10 for merchandise that had been destroyed in shipment. “Take it or leave it,” he tells me as he casually ignores my far more valuable evidence.

Although the court system may not be “user-friendly,” it provides a powerful weapon with which to confront such petty and unreasonable behavior by powerful and wealthy opponents who show so little regard for truth and fair play when dealing with the clients.