General Complaint

SMALL CLAIMS FILING INSTRUCTIONS 1. The jurisdiction of Small Claims Court is $5 , 000.00 or less, exclusive of costs. If your claim is for more than this amount and you wish to bring suit in Small Claims, please write the 2. In order to file a Small Claims action against someone you must have their physical address . 3. Complete the General Complaint form: a) Complete the p e - mail address, and phone number. b) ne number is optional. i. If you are suing a husband an d wife, use their proper names. ii. If suing a corporation, you must serve the registered agent or an officer of the corporation. You may obtain this information by contacting the Division of Corporations in Tallahassee at (850) 245 - 6052 , or by checking www.sunbiz.org . iii. [company name]. c) Please give a brief description of why you are filing this suit. Include the date it occurred, and wher e it occurred. d) Enter the amount you are suing for in the space provided. e) Enter the amo unt of costs: filing fees, service fe e , and summons issuance fee. 4. Attach any paperwork to the General Complaint form that you may need to prove your claim ; i. e . : bill of sale , returned check, promissory note, written warranty, lease , note, etc. 5. The General Complaint must either be sign ed in front of a Deputy Clerk or notarized by a Notary Public. Hunter S. Conrad, Esq . St. Johns County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller 4010 Lewis Speedway, Saint Augustine, Florida 32084 Office: (904) 819 - 3650 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com If C omplaint is to be si g ned in front of a Deputy Clerk: file in our office at 4010 Lewis Speedway, St. Augustine, FL 32084. P lease make copies of only the attachments to the Complaint for each defendant. The originals will be returned to you upon filing. A photo ID is required. If Complaint is notarized : you may e ither file in our office or mail your completed packet to: Attn: Small Claims, 4010 Lewis Speedway, St. Augustine, FL 32084. P lease make a copy of the completed Complaint (with attachments, if applicable) for each defendant. pies for you at a cost of $0.15 per page (before filing the case), or $1.00 per page (after filing the case). 6. After the case has been filed, a pre - trial summons with a pre - trial date will be issued. The summons and an attached copy of the General Complain t will need to be s erved on each defendant by the s 7. The filing fee, summons issuance fee , and s Schedule of Fees . The filing fee , summons issuance fee , s service fee can served in St. Johns County. personally, please be advised the St. Johns Coun money orders are accepted. If the defendant does not reside in St. Johns County, contact the sheriff in the county in which they reside for service f ees and instructions. When you file, please bring in and an addressed, stamped envelope; alternatively, our office can provide you with the paperwork and you can send it to that county for service. If suing an insurance company , service fee of forty dollars ($40.00) per defendant , please provide a check or money order in the amount of fifteen dollar s ($15.00) made payable to the Insurance Commis sioner. 8. The p laintiff is required to be present at the time appointed for the p re - trial of this case unless the defendant was not served. If you fail to appear, the case will be dismissed. 9. Please notify our office if your claim has been settled prior to the pre - trial date. Our office will provide you paperwork to dismiss your case. law for you. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com IN THE COUNTY COURT, SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR ST. JOHNS COUNTY, FLORIDA CASE NO: DIV: NAME ADDRESS PHONE CITY, STATE & ZIP CODE EMAIL ADDRESS Plaintiff (s) , vs. NAME ADDRESS PHONE CITY, STATE & ZIP CODE EMAIL ADDRESS Defendant(s), GENERAL COMPLAINT Plaintiff(s), , sues Defendant(s) , and alleges : 1. This is an action for damages that does not exceed $5,000.00. 2. Give a brief description of why you have filed this suit if you are not attaching any supporting documentation: . Wherefore, the plaintiff(s) demands judgment for damages against d efendant(s) in the amount of $ , together with the costs of filing this suit in the amount o f $ . American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com Plaintiff , , b eing duly sworn on oath, states that the foregoing is a just and true statement of the amount owing by the defendant(s) to the plaintiff(s). The plaintiff(s) also states that the defendant(s) is/are not in the military service. STATE OF FLORIDA COUNTY OF ST. JOHNS Sworn t o or affirmed and signed before me on by . NOTARY PUBLIC or DEPUTY CLERK [Print, type, or stamp commissio ned name of notary or clerk.] Personally known Produced identification Type of identification produced . American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com SMALL CLAIMS SCHEDULE OF FEES at the time of filing your suit. St. Johns County Clerk of Court Fees Claims less than $100.00 $55.00 Claims from $100.01 up to $500.00 $80.00 Claims from $500.01 up to $2,500.00 $175.00 Claims from $2 , 500.01 up to $5 , 000.00 $300.00 Summons Issuanc e $10.00 per summons Service of Summons $40.00 per defendant Please make checks payable to: Hunter S. Conrad or St. Johns County Clerk of Courts. For your convenience, the St. Johns County Clerk of Court s can accept both the filing fee and the Fees may be paid with a We do not accept out - of - state personal checks umber on them. If the defendant(s) address is outside St. Johns County, payment for service of process must be made by money order or business check payable to that county . Cash or personal checks will not be accepted. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com