Vermont Statutes Title 12 Sec. 5531
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 12 Sec. 5531
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
§ 5531. Rules governing procedure
(a) The Supreme Court, pursuant to section 1 of this title, shall make rules under this chapter applicable to such Court providing for a simple, informal, and inexpensive procedure for the determination, according to the rules of substantive law, of actions of a civil nature of which they have jurisdiction, other than actions for slander or libel and in which the plaintiff does not claim as debt or damage more than $10,000.00. Small claims proceedings shall be limited in accord with this chapter and the procedures made available under those rules. The procedure shall not be exclusive but shall be alternative to the formal procedure begun by the filing of a complaint.
(b) Parties may not request claims for relief other than money damages under this chapter. Nor may parties split a claim in excess of $10,000.00 into two or more claims under this chapter.
(c) In small claims actions where the plaintiff makes a claim for relief greater than $3,500.00, the defendant shall have the right to request a special assignment of a judicial officer. Upon making this request, a Superior judge or a member of the Vermont bar appointed pursuant to 4 V.S.A. § 22(b) shall be assigned to hear the action.
(d) Venue in small claims actions shall be governed by section 402 of this title.
(e) Notwithstanding this section or any other provision of law, the small claims court shall not have jurisdiction over actions for collection of any debt greater than $5,000.00 arising out of:
(1) a consumer credit transaction as defined in 15 U.S.C. § 1679a; or
(2) medical debt as defined in 18 V.S.A. § 9481. (Amended 1965, No. 194, § 8, eff. July 1, 1965, operative Feb. 1, 1967; 1967, No. 65; 1967, No. 311 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. March 22, 1968; 1971, No. 44, § 1; 1973, No. 249 (Adj. Sess.), § 40, eff. April 9, 1974; 1977, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1983, No. 208 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1993, No. 160 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1995, No. 181 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1996; 2007, No. 39, § 3; 2009, No. 154 (Adj. Sess.), § 83; 2023, No. 46, § 9, eff. June 5, 2023.)