Colusa County Small Claims Court

Court Information

Court name

Colusa County Superior Court -- Small Claims Division

Address

547 Market Street, Colusa, CA 95932

Phone

(530) 458-0598

Hours

Mon-Fri 8:30am-5:00pm

Official website

https://www.colusa.courts.ca.gov/divisions/small-claims

Typical hearing wait

8 weeks

Filing Fees

Max claim: $12,500 · Required forms: SC-100, SC-104

Claim amount	Filing fee
$1 – $1,500	$30
$1,501 – $5,000	$50
$5,001 – $12,500	$75

Fee waiver available if you qualify (form FW-001).

How to File

File your Plaintiff's Claim and Order to Go to Small Claims Court (SC-100) in person or by mail at the Colusa County Superior Court Clerk's Office, 547 Market Street, Colusa, CA 95932 -- the county's single courthouse, which handles all case types including small claims. Colusa does not offer e-filing for small claims (only civil, probate, family law, and juvenile dependency cases e-file), so bring or mail your forms; faxed filings are not accepted, though handwritten forms are fine. Bring the filing fee or a fee-waiver request (form FW-001). Free help preparing your case is available through the court's Self-Help Center at the same address, (530) 458-0598 or self-help@colusa.courts.ca.gov.

Serving the Defendant

You may not personally serve the defendant yourself; have another adult who is not a party to the case serve them, or ask the Clerk's Office to serve the defendant by certified mail for a fee. Service must be completed at least 15 days before the hearing (20 days if the defendant lives outside Colusa County). After service, file a Proof of Service (SC-104) with the court.

Allowed methods: Personal service, Substituted service, Certified mail
Deadline: Serve at least 15 days before the hearing date.

Hearing Tips

Arrive promptly at your assigned court time -- if you're late, your case may be heard without you.
Bring enough photocopies of all your evidence for each party and the judge, and bring your witnesses; copies given to the judge may not be returned to you.
Have your documents organized in chronological order before your case is called, and expect to wait, since several other cases are set for the same time slot.
Always address the judge, not the other party, when presenting your case; the plaintiff typically testifies first, then the defendant.
If you are not fluent in English, you can ask the court in advance to arrange an interpreter.

✓ Interpreters available ✓ Phone appearance allowed

Know Your Rights Under California Law

California Civil Code § 1950.5 requires landlords to return your deposit or provide an itemized statement within 21 days of move-out. If they fail to do so, you may be entitled to your deposit back plus up to 2× the deposit amount in statutory damages.

Read the full California Security Deposit Law guide →

Let us handle the legal work for you

Accessible Justice files your claim, prepares your documents, and guides you through the process — no upfront cost.

Start my security deposit case →