Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: what venue should i file the small claim in

Barring a written contract which establishes venue in California, and some basis to establish jurisidiction over the buyer, you will have to go to Maryland.

Our office does collection work and may be able to assist you on a contingency basis.

Re: what venue should i file the small claim in

With all due respect to Mr. Telanoff, you may be able to sue in California. The existence of certain facts could give California courts jurisdiction over the party that owes you money. Email me if you would like to discuss further.

Regards,

Ben

Re: what venue should i file the small claim in

First, the issue is jurisdiction, not venue. Venue refers to the county of a particular state where a matter should be heard. Jurisdiction asks whether the matter should be in California or some other state, or possibly federal court. There is more to it, but suffice it to say we're talking about what court could have jurisdiction over the parties and the dispute.

California courts can have jurisdiction of disputes involving out-of-state defendants if the defendant has substantial contacts with California (generally, doing business here regularly is enough), if the contract were to be performed here (i.e. if you manufactured goods to order) or the contract specified that disputes would be heard in California. If this is just a sale of general merchandise to a small, local company in Maryland, you probably would not be able to subject them to the jurisdiction of a California court.

Further, if the suit is to be in small claims court (perhaps the only realistic alternative for a $1200 claim), the defendant would have to be served in California. If they do enough business here to be registered here, they would have an agent for the service of process (by law), and you could serve that person. If, however, they have no California agent, serving them in the state could be an impossibility.

If your claim is based on a contract with an attorneys fees clause, filing in superior court might be practical. Superior court suits can be served out of state by various means.

Ultimately, a lot may depend upon the Maryland company's assets, good character and lack of defenses to your claim. If they are not broke, not a bunch of sleazebags and have no legitimate defense to payment, they might pay in response to a letter threatening suit.