BILL NUMBER: S2849
SPONSOR: BRESLIN
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the uniform justice court act, in relation to civil
jurisdictional limits and increasing filing fees
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Increases the jurisdictional limit from $3,000 to $5,000 for justice
courts.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one of this bill amends section 201 of the Uniform Justice Court
Act, to increase the jurisdictional limit of the small claims, money
actions and actions to recover chattels from $3,000 to $5,000.
Section two of this bill amends section 202 of the Uniform Justice Court
Act, to increase the jurisdictional limit of the small claims, money
actions and actions to recover chattels from $3,000 to $5,000.
Section three of the bill amends section 1801 of the uniform justice
court act as it relates to the definition of small claims.
Section four of the bill amends section 1803 of the uniform justice
court act as it relates to increasing the filing fees from $10 to $15
for claims less than $1,000 and from $15 to $20 for claims over $1,000.
Section five of the bill relates to the effective date.
 
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION:
The amendments increase the filing fees for small claims cases to
address additional caseload that would result from expanding the number
of cases that could be brought to small claims court.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Jurisdictional limits in the Uniform Justice Court Act were last
increased over thirty years ago from $2,000 to $3,000 (Chap. 268 of
1977) and small claims defined over thirteen years ago from $2,000 to
$3,000 (Chap. 76 of 1976). This $3,000 limit is no longer adequate to
cover many basic claims, with the result that claimants are forced to
choose between artificially lowering their claims in order to fall with-
in the limits or litigating outside of the local justice courts. To
bring a case in supreme court it now costs at least $210 just to file
and request a hearing. This bill will bring the limits up to date allow-
ing citizens to litigate small matters without the cost and expense of
Supreme Court.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S4108 - of 2021/22 - REFERRED TO JUDICIARY
S.5951/A.3799A of 2019-20: Passed Senate, Died in Assembly, Returned to
Senate, Referred to Judiciary
A.2157 of 2017-18
A.1935 of 2015-2016
A.1746 of 2013-2014
A.2091 of 2011-2012
A.3876 of 2009-2010
A.10731 of 2007-2008
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law and shall apply to actions or
proceedings filed on or after such date.