Harris County Small Claims Petition: Filing, Service, and Appeals

To file a Harris County small claims petition, complete the sworn petition form from the Justice of the Peace Courts, take it to the correct precinct clerk with $139 in fees, and let the constable serve the defendant. You can sue for up to $20,000 in money or personal property, and you don’t need a lawyer to do any of it.

What Justice Court Can Hear

Justice courts handle civil disputes worth $20,000 or less, not counting interest that accrues after you file.¹ Filing fees don’t count toward the cap. If your claim is larger, you belong in county or district court instead.

Some cases are off-limits no matter the dollar amount. Justice courts cannot hear divorces, defamation suits, actions to decide who owns land, or suits to enforce a lien on real property.¹ What the court does hear is the everyday stuff: unpaid debts, property damage, security deposit fights, breach of contract, and recovery of personal belongings.

Choosing the Right Precinct

Harris County has eight Justice of the Peace precincts. Filing in the wrong one can get your case transferred or dismissed, so check the boundaries at jp.hctx.net before you submit anything. Under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 502.4, you can file in the precinct where:²

The defendant lives.
The incident giving rise to the dispute happened (or most of it did).
The contract was to be performed, if your claim is based on an agreement.
The personal property is located, if you’re trying to recover items.

If the defendant lives outside Texas or you genuinely don’t know their address, file in the precinct where you live.² For contract disputes involving consumer goods, services, or personal loans, Texas law narrows the choice to the precinct where the contract was signed or where the defendant resides.³ The rule keeps consumers from being pulled to a distant courthouse.

Filling Out the Petition

Download the Small Claims Petition as a PDF from the Harris County Justice of the Peace Courts website, or pick up a paper copy at any precinct clerk’s office.⁴ The form asks for:⁵

Your full legal name, street address, phone, and fax if you have one.
The defendant’s full legal name, street address, and phone if known. A P.O. Box alone won’t work; the constable needs a physical place to deliver the citation.
The dollar amount you’re claiming, up to $20,000.
A description and claimed value of any personal property you want returned.
Any other relief you’re asking for beyond money or property.
The basis of your claim, meaning a plain-language account of what happened and why the defendant owes you.
Whether you consent to receive court documents by email, with your email address.

The basis-for-claim section is where most people either say too much or too little. You don’t need a legal brief. State the facts in order, with dates and dollar amounts. Something like: “On March 5, 2026, I paid defendant $3,500 for kitchen countertop installation. Defendant never performed the work and has not returned the money.” That is what the judge needs. Skip the legal jargon and the emotional language.

The Oath Requirement

The petition must be sworn. Harris County gives you two ways to handle it: appear in person before the Justice of the Peace or the court clerk and swear to your claim, or file a petition you’ve already had verified.⁶ If you walk it in, the clerk administers the oath at the counter. If you file electronically or by mail, take it to a notary first. The court will not accept an unsworn petition.

If You Have a Lawyer or Are Filing for a Business

You do not need a lawyer, but an attorney can sign and file the petition for you, and so can an authorized agent.⁶ Corporations are not required to be represented by an attorney in justice court, so a company officer or employee can appear for the business.¹

Fees and How to Submit

Filing the petition and serving one defendant costs $139 total:⁷

Local consolidated civil fee: $33
State consolidated civil fee: $21
Constable service fee: $85 per defendant

Add $85 for each additional defendant who must be served.⁸ If service takes longer than two hours, the constable’s office charges $75 per hour per deputy on top of that.⁷

You have three submission options:

In person at the precinct clerk’s office, paying by cash or money order and swearing the oath at the counter.
Electronically through eFileTexas.gov, where accepted, paying by credit card.⁹
By mail, sending the completed, sworn petition and payment to the precinct office.

In person is the most straightforward because the oath, payment, and any clerk questions get resolved in one trip.

If you can’t afford the fees, file a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs, a Texas Supreme Court–approved form asking the court to waive them.¹⁰

Getting the Defendant Served

After the clerk accepts your filing and fee, the court issues a citation, the official notice telling the defendant they’ve been sued. The citation and a copy of your petition have to be delivered to the defendant before the case can move forward. Texas rules allow service by a sheriff, constable, certified private process server, the clerk via certified or registered mail, or any adult authorized by court order.¹¹ In Harris County, the $85 fee covers delivery by a precinct constable, which is the default.

If the defendant is outside Harris County, contact the constable or sheriff in that county to find out their service fee and mailing instructions.⁵ A private process server is another option, paid separately.

The most common reason small claims cases stall is a bad defendant address. If the constable can’t find your defendant, the citation comes back unserved and you’ll need to supply a better address or ask the court for an alternative method of service.

After Filing: What Happens Next

Once served, the defendant has until the end of the 14th day after service to file a written answer. If day 14 lands on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, or if the court closes before 5:00 p.m. that day, the deadline rolls to the next business day.²

If the defendant answers, the court sets the case for a hearing. The defendant may also file a counterclaim, in which case you’ll need to defend against it while presenting your own case.

If the Defendant Doesn’t Answer

When the 14 days pass with no answer, you can ask for a default judgment. If your claim is based on a written document the defendant signed, such as a contract or promissory note, and you file a copy with a sworn statement that it’s genuine and that you’ve accounted for all payments and credits, the judge can enter judgment for your requested amount without a hearing.¹²

For any other type of claim, request a default hearing and show up to prove your damages. If you prove what you’re owed, the judge enters judgment in that amount. If you can’t prove your damages, the judge rules for the defendant even though the defendant never appeared.¹² Bring receipts, contracts, photos, and everything else that shows what the defendant cost you.

Before any default judgment can be entered against an individual, federal law requires you to file an affidavit stating whether the defendant is in active military service. This comes from the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, which shields active-duty members from judgments while they can’t appear. If you don’t know, the affidavit must say so. Filing a knowingly false military affidavit is a federal crime punishable by up to a year in prison.¹³ You can check military status for free at scra.dmdc.osd.mil, print the result, and attach it.

Preparing for the Hearing

Small claims hearings are deliberately informal. The judge is there to develop the facts and reach a fair result quickly, so the standard rules of evidence and civil procedure don’t apply unless the judge decides a particular rule is needed for fairness.¹⁴ The judge can question you, the defendant, and any witnesses directly.

That informality is not an excuse to walk in unprepared. Organize your evidence in the order you plan to discuss it, and bring the original plus two copies of every document, one for the judge and one for the other side. Useful evidence includes contracts and written agreements, invoices, receipts, canceled checks, photographs of damaged property, texts and emails with the defendant, and repair estimates or bills that document what you actually lost.

If someone else saw what happened or can speak to your damages, bring them. You can also ask the court to issue a subpoena for a reluctant witness. Keep it focused: what happened, when, what it cost, and how the defendant is responsible. Justice court judges hear dozens of cases a docket and reward conciseness.

If You Lose: The 21-Day Appeal Window

Either side can appeal a justice court judgment. You have 21 days from the date the judge signs the judgment to file a written notice of appeal with the justice court.² The appeal goes to the county court, which holds a completely new trial, called de novo, meaning the case starts over from scratch and both sides can present new evidence.

To perfect the appeal you have to post a bond or make a cash deposit. A plaintiff who lost posts a $500 bond. A defendant who lost posts a bond equal to twice the judgment. If you can’t afford it, use the same Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs used to waive filing fees.¹⁰ Miss the 21 days and the judgment is final.

1
State of Texas. Texas Government Code Section 27.031 – Jurisdiction
2
Texas Courts. Texas Rules of Civil Procedure – March 1, 2026
3
State of Texas. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 15.092 – Contract
4
Harris County Justice of the Peace Courts. Small Claims Petition
5
Harris County Justice of the Peace Courts. Harris County Small Claims Petition
6
Harris County Justice of the Peace. Harris County Justice of the Peace – Filing Small Claims Cases
7
Harris County Justice Courts. Harris County Justice Courts Civil Filing Fees and Court Costs
8
Harris County. In Harris County Fees
9
eFileTexas.Gov. Official E-Filing System for Texas
10
Texas Courts. Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs or an Appeal Bond
11
Texas State Law Library. Serving the Defendant – Small Claims Cases
12
Harris County Justice of the Peace. Texas Rules of Civil Procedure – Part V – Rules of Practice in Justice Courts
13
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3931 – Default Judgments
14
Texas State Law Library. General Information – Small Claims Cases