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Thread: Can anyone provide advice on Small Claims Court?

  1. #1
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    Can anyone provide advice on Small Claims Court?

    I am strongly considering filing a small claims court case over unpaid refunds that total perhaps $4,000. I returned about 240 items under a manufacturer's recall. The company handling the recall on behalf of the manufacturer claims that only 83 of the items I returned qualify for the recall. I carefully documented every returned item and believe I can substantiate that every item I returned qualifies for the recall.

    In a case like this, do I file a claim against the manufacturer of the goods or the company handling the recall on behalf of the manufacturer? If I file against the company handling the recall, do I file against corporate HQ or the actual facility in another city and state that handles the recall?

    I suppose I really should be asking a lawyer, but legal fees would quickly eat up my $4,000. I already face significant travel expenses since I will have to travel a long distance to appear in court.

    The company handling the recall so far refuses to give me a list of the items rejected even though it appears they have that information.

  2. #2
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    Okay, I did more of my own research and in Minnesota I can file a claim in any county in which a corporation has an office. I found that the company handling the recall has an office locally so it appears I wouldn't have to travel to Chicago.

    I still have no idea if I would file a claim against the manufacturer whose items are being recalled or the company processing the recall on behalf of the manufacturer. I think it would be the company processing the recalled items as they determine if the items are actually the ones being recalled or not.

    I guess if I spend the $100 or so and the court throws out the case because I filed the claim against the wrong party that is better than traveling 100s or 1000s of miles to get my claim thrown out.

  3. #3
    Figure out if you have a breach of warranty or breach of contract case. Filing for either may be different in your state. I think either may allow a demand for 'specific performance', you need to check, one of your counts may need to include this in addition to a demand for money.

    A demand for money asks for money (refund), Specific Performance demands that they follow the legal guidelines for dealing with a recall, which might simply be a replacement of the defective product. The court may not be able to make the choice for you, state law re: recalls might simply get you replacements.

    First, send a demand letter, this will require specific language. Many states require that any filing be preceded by this in an effort to unclog the docket. If you need to file, file against the company, any subsidiaries, vendors, salesmen by name, their insurance company (they might have product coverage) and "Companies A - Z".

    If a corporation, the company has to have a "Registered Agent" to receive service. This is public info. Make sure the suit is delivered to this entity, usually a lawyer on staff or the council of record. The reason to name "A - Z" is so you can add names later if needed (amend) without re-filing.

    Once filed and served, file for discovery (sometimes you can do this at the same time) and include an audited declaration of solvency or similar. This is an accounting of their financial condition. If they are bankrupt, stop and watch some baseball, you won't collect even if you win. They will stall on the delivery of these.... But if you ever find they withheld pertinent info from you, this puts them in contempt of court. They will file discovery against you too. Deliver everything they ask for as long as it's pertinent. Anything you can't deliver, explain why.

    Small claims has some severe limitations, you might want to go to superior court right away. Standards of proof are the same but you may have a long wait for a hearing unless you can get an arbitration hearing with a clerk.

    Sometimes the suit alone will get you your money, or at least most of it.

    I'd recommend a great book: Everybody's Guide to Small Claims Court by Nolo Press. It's available for download. I have several of their books.

    http://www.nolo.com/products/everybo...ourt-NSCC.html

    If there is a law school nearby, ask if they have students available to help you. No kidding. Ask at the courthouse too before you even file anything.
    .
    "I love the smell of sawdust in the morning".
    Robert Duval in "Apileachips Now". - almost.


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  4. #4
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    The publisher of some DIY books recalled about a dozen books due to wiring diagram issues. The publisher is refunding the full MSRP on each book if the book is returned to them. They hired a third party to process the recalled books.

    The terms of the recall say the owner of the book can get a refund of the full MSRP no matter what price the owner of the book paid including free.

    I returned approximately 230 books so far under the recall. The company processing the returned books says that about 2/3 of my books are not the proper ISBN number and not affected. I carefully documented each and every book and recorded the ISBN number for each book. The ISBN numbers all match the list of recalled books.

    The company refuses so far to give me a list of which books did not qualify. I don't know the exact books that didn't qualify yet, but my estimate is they owe me around $4,000 for the books they claim don't qualify.

  5. #5
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    Small claims court is really designed to bring a claim against one or more defendants who are in the court's jurisdiction. It is not designed for making claims against everybody and their brother. I have no intention of suing anybody and everybody on this.

    I will certainly exhaust other avenues before I file in small claims court. I just want to have my ducks in a row if I do need to file in small claims court. I have contacted the Consumer Product Safety Commission because they are involved in this voluntary recall.

    I have not received any payment for even the books that they say qualified for the recall. They are weeks overdue on that payment.

    My intent would be to file a claim for the entire amount due and the defendant can decide how they want to deal with the payments.

  6. #6
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    I'd say go for it against the people that are coordinating the recall.

    Been to small claims three times. Won two. Apparently, sales commissions don't always have to be paid in Missouri, so I lost that one.

    I enjoyed the experiences. The two times I did win, it was against car dealers. Best 25$ I ever spent (and got back).

    My advice is to be pretty well prepared. I think most folks aren't. When the judge gets to you and you're prepared, you're believable - which is half the battle. Wear a tie. You'll need (in my opinion) proof of what you sent and proof that you sent it to the other party. Wouldn't hurt to have bank statements in case they claim you cashed their check.

  7. #7
    We just went to small claims court with a window contractor. In Connecticut at least, the plaintiff, meaning you, almost always wins. Just filing the forms and serving them notice may get you the refund you want. If you do follow this through make sure you include your expenses (legal fees, your travel time, etc) in your requested damages. You may not get them, but it will influence any potential award. We asked for the damages, legal fees, and expenses to redo the work. We didn't get the legal fees but we were awarded 100% of the expenses plus the estimated cost of redoing the job.
    makers of fine reproduction brass & iron hardware

  8. #8
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    The company coordinating the recall finally today emailed me a list of the books they show as qualified for the recall. What I really want is the list of books they claim don't qualify.

    What I don't understand is they accepted some copies of a book and not other copies of the same book. In one case I sent 55 copies of the same book and they listed two as being accepted. Either the company handling the recall is totally inept or they are intentionally disqualifying books to reduce the publisher's liability.

    I am going to spend the rest of this week getting all my documentation together and next week I am going to go over to the courthouse to figure out what I need to do if I do want to file a claim.

    I will send a demand letter to them first. I'm not sure if I should send it certified mail or use an overnight service. Some companies routinely refuse certified mail, but I don't know many who would refuse an overnight envelope.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    The company coordinating the recall finally today emailed me a list of the books they show as qualified for the recall. What I really want is the list of books they claim don't qualify.

    What I don't understand is they accepted some copies of a book and not other copies of the same book. In one case I sent 55 copies of the same book and they listed two as being accepted. Either the company handling the recall is totally inept or they are intentionally disqualifying books to reduce the publisher's liability.

    I am going to spend the rest of this week getting all my documentation together and next week I am going to go over to the courthouse to figure out what I need to do if I do want to file a claim.

    I will send a demand letter to them first. I'm not sure if I should send it certified mail or use an overnight service. Some companies routinely refuse certified mail, but I don't know many who would refuse an overnight envelope.
    Ask at the courthouse, but most jurisdictions consider it 'served' if you send via regular mail and certified whether accepted or not. Fed Ex won't hurt, but in some states you need to hire a process server, usually an off-duty sheriff, who will send you 'proof of service'. Just dropping a complaint at someone's feet does the job whether they pick it up or not.

    Sounds like they're just trying to wear you down already. You should have a pretty good idea for who else is on the recall list. Call them and see what's going on.
    .
    "I love the smell of sawdust in the morning".
    Robert Duval in "Apileachips Now". - almost.


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  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mitchell Andrus View Post
    Ask at the courthouse, but most jurisdictions consider it 'served' if you send via regular mail and certified whether accepted or not. Fed Ex won't hurt, but in some states you need to hire a process server, usually an off-duty sheriff, who will send you 'proof of service'. Just dropping a complaint at someone's feet does the job whether they pick it up or not.
    .
    Once I decide to file in court the court will deal with service on the defendant.

    Right now I am trying to figure out the best way to send the company a letter demanding payment under the terms of the recall. Certified mail is less expensive, but I know some companies simply refuse certified mail for various reasons. Nobody is likely to refuse an overnight envelope, but it costs me more money.

    It appears I might be getting some movement from the company. They have agreed to send me a list of the books they didn't acccept. I talked to someone about my issue and they are supposedly going to recheck the list of books I sent. I asked to be sure they didn't bungle the 10 digit to 13 digit ISBN conversion. (Books used to have only 10 digit ISBNs, but the recall used the new 13 digit ISBNs for the books.)

    I'm going to get my documentation in order in case they don't give me a satisfactory answer by early next week.

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