The Texas Constitution requires that each county in the state of Texas establish between one and two Justices of the Peace precincts. Depending on the size of the county each Precinct has one or two Justices of the Peace. JP Court has many names so it’s Justice of the Peace Court or it’s called JP Court, also Small Claims Court.
Let’s discuss what a small claim is. The function of the Justice Court is to oversee cases involving an amount in controversy of $20,000 or less and this is where the term small claim comes from. Basically that means the Justice Court can hear your case if you’re seeking a judgment of $20,000 or less.
Generally, anything above $20,000 needs to be heard in the county court or district court so it needs to be filed there because a JP Court doesn’t have jurisdiction to hear the case.
Justice of the Peace judges are often referred to as JP judges. JP judges have jurisdiction over Class C misdemeanors. Class C misdemeanors include offenses punishable by a fine of up to $500 and these misdemeanors carry no jail time. So think small traffic tickets, some public intoxication tickets, possession of drug paraphernalia (but not the drugs themselves), theft of $100 or less and other small tickets that have very, very low fines. A Justice of the Peace may also issue search warrants and, interestingly enough, they may serve as the coroner in counties where there’s no provision for a medical examiner. You can also get married at the Justice Court. Many courts require appointments and a small fee so if that’s something you want to do make sure you’re prepared for your big day. Call ahead, don’t just show up. Nobody wants to walk to their wedding day and not be able to get married.
The Justice Courts are meant to be user friendly. Oftentimes neither party has an attorney. They are supposed to be user friendly. So if you go to the JP Court in person or online, they have tons of templates and tons of forms that you can use to navigate your case. If you want to represent yourself, which is called “Pro Se” representation, you absolutely can. Many times there are cases that attorneys are not going to take because the value is low, so this is the place to take your claim.
The Texas Rules of Evidence generally do not apply in Justice Court and one of the reasons for this is because lay people or non-attorneys often cannot navigate the rules of evidence. You don’t need them in Justice Court. The Texas Rules of Procedure provide a certain set of rules to be used in the Justice Court. Those can be found in section five of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. So it’s absolutely manageable to do on your own.
That said, if you think you need an attorney, please call the Houston lawyer referral service at 713-237-9429.