San Benito County Small Claims Court

Court Information

Court name

San Benito County Superior Court -- Small Claims Division

Address

450 Fourth Street, Hollister, CA 95023

Phone

(831) 636-4057

Hours

Mon-Fri 8:00am-3:30pm (clerk hours)

Official website

https://www.sanbenito.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 small claims case in person at the San Benito County Superior Court, 450 Fourth Street, Hollister, CA 95023 (Civil Division; clerk hours Monday-Friday, 8:00am-3:30pm). Bring a completed Plaintiff's Claim and Order to Go to Small Claims Court (SC-100) with the filing fee, or ask the clerk about a fee waiver if you cannot afford it. Do not attach exhibits or evidence to your claim -- bring those to the hearing instead.

Serving the Defendant

The defendant must be personally served with your claim at least 15 days before the hearing date (20 days if they live outside San Benito County), per California Code of Civil Procedure section 116.340. Service may be made by personal delivery, substituted service, or certified mail with a return receipt through the court clerk.

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

Hearing Tips

Bring witnesses, receipts, and any other evidence to your hearing -- do not attach documents to your claim when filing.
If you need a court interpreter for a civil or small claims hearing, ask the clerk as early as possible; an interpreter is provided if one is available, but a friend or relative age 18 or older can also interpret if none is available.
If you need assistive listening systems, real-time captioning, or a sign-language interpreter, request an accommodation (form MC-410) at least five days before your trial.
You may request to appear remotely by video for a hearing by filing a Notice of Remote Appearance (RA-010) with the court; requests are reviewed hearing-by-hearing and must be filed again for each date.

✓ 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 →

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