New jurisdictional limits for NC courts

As of August 1, litigants need to think carefully about the proper forum before filing a lawsuit in North Carolina. Recent changes instituted by the legislature have raised the minimum threshold for filing cases in Superior Court from $10,000 to $25,000. As such, all disputes under $25,000 must be litigated in a lower court. Under this new law, Small Claims Courts are likely to see a great increase in their case load as the jurisdictional maximum for small claims matters has increased from $5,000 t0 $10,000. This means any dispute greater than $10,000 but less than $25,000 must be filed in District Court.

While these new jurisdictional limits will allow more litigants to take their matters to Small Claims Court, it is important to remember that judgments from Small Claims Court can be appealed directly to District Court. For this reason, it is always a good decision to consult with an attorney before entering litigation. Selecting a forum that is not appropriate for your matter, can be a costly mistake.

Contact Dozier Miller Law Group’s Civil Litigation Counsel:

• J. Gentry Caudill
• W. Joseph Dozier, Jr.
• Adam S. Hocutt