Civil lawsuit
Superior Court, in your own name.
Above $12,500 the case leaves small claims and becomes a real civil action. That means a typed complaint on numbered pleading paper, a summons, a cover sheet, and hard deadlines. You are allowed to do all of it yourself, in Pro Per. The court only cares that the documents are right.
Where your case lands
Code Civ. Proc. section 85. Filing fee is $240 or $370 depending on the amount. Discovery is capped, so the case moves faster.
Filing fee is $450. No cap on what the court can award, full discovery, and a jury if you ask for one.
For the complaint alone, before anyone appears in court on your behalf.
What actually has to happen
A civil case is procedural in a way small claims is not. These are the steps the clerk and the code require, in order.
1.Send a demand letter first
Before you fileIt is not required, but it is the cheapest move you have. A dated demand often gets paid, and if it does not, it shows the court you tried. On a contract with a fee clause it also starts the clock on recoverable costs.
2.Draft the complaint
Pleading paperCalifornia Rules of Court 2.100 through 2.119 govern the page itself: 28 numbered lines, one-inch margins, the caption block, the verification. A complaint that does not comply gets rejected before anyone reads the facts.
3.Plead every element
This is the caseEach cause of action has required elements, and leaving one out invites a demurrer that kills the claim. We draft the causes of action that match your facts and state each element on its own numbered paragraph.
4.File with a summons and cover sheet
Same daySUM-100 and CM-010 go in with the complaint. Most California counties now require electronic filing for civil cases, and the county pages tell you which portal yours uses.
5.Serve within 60 days
Hard deadlineYou have 60 days from filing to serve the defendant and file proof of service, or the court can set an order to show cause. You may never serve the papers yourself.
6.Their 30 days start at service
After serviceThe defendant has 30 days to answer or demur. No answer means you can request entry of default, which is how a large share of self-represented plaintiffs actually win.
The deadlines that end cases
Statute of limitations runs from the harm, not from the argument about it: four years on a written contract, two on an oral contract, two for personal injury, three for property damage or fraud.
Claims against a public entity are far shorter. You generally must present a government claim within six months before you may sue at all.
After filing, the 60-day service window and the defendant's 30-day response window drive everything. Miss the first and the court can dismiss on its own; miss the meaning of the second and you leave a default judgment on the table.
What goes to the clerk
- Complaint
- Drafted on 28-line pleading paper. Parties, jurisdiction, venue, the facts, each cause of action, and a prayer stating the dollar amount.
- SUM-100
- Summons. The court's order telling the defendant they have 30 days to respond. Issued by the clerk and served with the complaint.
- CM-010
- Civil Case Cover Sheet. Tells the court what kind of case it is and whether it is limited or unlimited. Required at filing.
- FW-001
- Request to Waive Court Fees. Included when you cannot afford the filing fee. On a $450 unlimited filing this matters more than anywhere else.
- POS-010
- Proof of Service of Summons. Filed after service. Without it on file, nothing you do next counts.
Filing rules change by county
Civil e-filing is mandatory in most large California counties and optional in others, and each court has its own portal, fee schedule, and rejection habits. We keep a page for every county with the address, the fees, and how that clerk wants it submitted.
What you get
Tell us what happened in your own words. We draft the complaint, pick the causes of action your facts support, and assemble the rest of the filing around it.
- A complete complaint on compliant 28-line pleading paper, in Times Roman 12pt
- Causes of action drafted with every required element stated separately
- A prayer for relief that states the dollar amount you are asking for
- SUM-100 summons and CM-010 civil case cover sheet, filled in and consistent with the caption
- A demand letter to send before you file, if you have not sent one
- Fee waiver forms FW-001 and FW-003 when you need them
- POS-010 proof of service and instructions for whoever serves the papers
- A filing checklist: which court, which portal, what it costs, how many copies
An attorney bills $1,500 to $3,000 to produce the same complaint. If you qualify for a fee waiver, your price drops to the small claims rate.
Start my civil caseFree to go all the way through. You only pay to unlock the clean, filing-ready packet.
Serious injury, a defendant with real insurance, or a case worth six figures is usually worth a contingency lawyer who takes a share instead of a fee. We will say so during the interview and can hand you to trial lawyers we work with, at no cost to you.
Questions people actually ask
- Can I really file a civil case without a lawyer?
- Yes. It is called appearing in Pro Per, and California courts see it every day. The rules are the same for you as for an attorney, which is why the documents have to be right.
- What is pleading paper?
- The numbered page a California complaint has to be typed on: 28 lines down the left margin, a caption block at the top, and specific margins under Rules of Court 2.104 and 2.108.
- Limited or unlimited, and why does it matter?
- Limited is $12,500 to $35,000 with restricted discovery and a lower fee. Unlimited is anything above that, with no cap and full discovery. We choose it from the amount you ask for.
- What if they never respond?
- After 30 days you can request entry of default and then a default judgment. That is the most common way an unrepresented plaintiff wins.
- Can I get my filing fee back?
- If you win, costs including the filing fee are generally recoverable from the defendant as the prevailing party.
- What happens after they answer?
- The case moves into discovery and case management. That part is on you, and it is the honest reason to consider an attorney if the amount is large.
file my case is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. We prepare documents from the information you provide. Deciding whether to sue, and for how much, is your decision.