ORS Chapter 52
Chapter 52 — CivilActions
2009 EDITION
CIVILACTIONS
JUSTICECOURTS
GENERALPROVISIONS
52.010 Actionscommenced and prosecuted, and judgments enforced, as in circuit court;prevailing party entitled to disbursements
52.020 Modeof proceeding and rules of evidence
52.030 Courtrules and procedures
52.035 Dismissalof civil cases for want of prosecution
52.040 Contemptin justice court
52.060 Personsentitled to act as attorneys in justice court
SUMMONS
52.110 Service;form, contents and requisites of summons
52.120 Personsauthorized to serve summons; compensation; manner of service
52.130 Appointmentof persons to serve process or order
52.170 Securityfor disbursements
52.180 Formof undertaking; qualifications and justification of sureties; deposit in lieuof undertaking
ATTACHMENT
52.210 Plaintiffentitled to attachment as in circuit court
52.220 Attachmentproceedings conducted as in circuit court
52.250 Attachmentof real property prohibited
PLEADINGS
52.310 Pleadingsgoverned by rules applicable to pleadings in circuit court
52.320 Counterclaimexceeding jurisdiction; transfer to circuit court; time allowed plaintiff toplead; costs; effect of failure to tender costs
TRIALFEES
52.410 Trialfee
52.420 Trialfee payable in advance; effect of failure to pay; recovery of fee asdisbursement
52.430 Stateor county exempted from prepaying trial fee; recovery of trial fee
52.440 Accountingfor and disposition of trial fee
TRIALAND JUDGMENT
52.510 Postponementof trial
52.520 Depositionsof witnesses as condition to postponement
52.530 Changeof place of trial
52.540 Paymentof disbursements for change of venue; subpoenaed witnesses
52.550 Whenchange of venue deemed complete
52.560 Jurisdictionto cease when title to real property in question; further proceedings incircuit court
52.570 Rightto jury trial
52.580 Judgment
52.590 Judgmentmay not determine or affect title to real property
ENFORCEMENTAND SETOFF OF JUDGMENTS; EXECUTIONS
52.600 Enforcementof justice court judgments generally
52.610 Enforcementof judgment given by other justice
52.620 Filingtranscript of judgment in another county; issuance of execution
52.635 Liensbased on justice court judgment
52.640 Setoffof judgment; application and notice
52.650 Rightof appeal precludes setoff; procedure to set off judgment of another court
52.660 Enforcementof setoff judgment stayed
52.670 Setoffof mutual judgments
52.680 Setoffof judgments in different amounts; disallowance of setoff
52.700 Returnon execution; to whom directed; duty of officer to execute writ
52.710 Renewalof execution; indorsement and entry of renewal
GENERALPROVISIONS
52.010Actions commenced and prosecuted, and judgments enforced, as in circuit court;prevailing party entitled to disbursements. (1) Actions at law in justicecourts shall be commenced and prosecuted to final determination and judgmentenforced therein, in the manner provided for similar actions in the circuitcourts, except as in this chapter otherwise provided.
(2)All disbursements shall in all cases be allowed the prevailing party.
52.020Mode of proceeding and rules of evidence. The mode of proceeding and therules of evidence are the same in a justice court as in a like action orproceeding in the circuit courts, except where otherwise specially provided.
52.030Court rules and procedures. The rules in justice courts governing mistakes inpleadings and amendments thereof, vacating defaults and judgments for mistake,inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect, the formation of issues of bothlaw and fact, the postponing of trials for cause shown, the mode of trial, theformation of the jury, the conduct and manner of trial by jury or by thejustice without a jury, the procedure regarding the verdict and judgment andthe enforcement thereof by execution shall be as prescribed for civil actionsin the circuit courts, except as otherwise provided.
52.035Dismissal of civil cases for want of prosecution. The justice ofthe peace of every justice court shall mail a notice to each of the attorneysof record, or, to the plaintiff where there is no licensed attorneyrepresenting the plaintiff, in every pending civil action, suit or proceedingin their respective courts in which no proceedings have been had or papersfiled for a period of more than one year. The notice shall state that each suchcase will be dismissed by the court for want of prosecution 60 days from thedate of mailing the notice, unless, on or before the expiration of the 60 days,application, either oral or written, be made to the court and good cause shownwhy it should be continued as a pending case. If such application is not madeor good cause is not shown, the court shall dismiss each such case. Nothingcontained herein shall be construed to prevent the dismissing at any time, forwant of prosecution, of any suit, action or proceeding upon motion of any partythereto. [1953 c.360 §1]
52.040Contempt in justice court. ORS 33.015 to 33.155, defining acts that constitutecontempt and the proceedings for imposing sanctions for contempt, apply tojustice courts. [Amended by 1991 c.724 §20; 1999 c.605 §4; 2005 c.22 §34]
52.050 [Repealed by1999 c.605 §8]
52.060Persons entitled to act as attorneys in justice court. Any person mayact as attorney for another in a justice court, except a person or officerserving any process in the action or proceeding, other than a subpoena.
SUMMONS
52.110Service; form, contents and requisites of summons. (1) At any timeafter the action is commenced by the filing of a complaint with the justice ofthe peace, the plaintiff may cause a summons to be served on the defendant. Itshall be subscribed by the plaintiff or plaintiff’s attorney or the justice ofthe peace. It shall specify the name of the court in which the complaint isfiled and shall contain the title of the cause specifying the names of theparties to the action, plaintiff and defendant. It shall be directed to thedefendant and shall require the defendant to appear and defend within the timerequired by ORCP 7 C(2) or, in case of failure to so appear and defend, theplaintiff will take judgment against the defendant for the money, property orother relief demanded in the complaint, with costs and disbursements of theaction.
(2)A summons shall contain a notice printed in type size equal to at least 8-pointtype which may be substantially in the following form:
______________________________________________________________________________
NOTICETO DEFENDANT:
READTHESE PAPERS
CAREFULLY!
Youmust “appear” in this case or the other side will win automatically. To “appear”you must file with the court a legal paper called a “motion” or “answer.” The “motion”or “answer” must be given to the justice of the peace within 30 days along withthe required filing fee. It must be in proper form and have proof of service onthe plaintiff’s attorney or, if the plaintiff does not have an attorney, proofof service on the plaintiff.
Ifyou have questions, you should see an attorney immediately.
______________________________________________________________________________[Amended by 1983 c.673 §10]
52.120Persons authorized to serve summons; compensation; manner of service. (1) The summonsin an action in a justice court shall be served by a person authorized to servesummons, who shall be compensated for service of the summons, as provided forthe service of summons in civil action in a circuit court.
(2)The summons shall be served in the manner provided for the service of summonsin a civil action in a circuit court. The summons shall be returned to thejustice by whom it was issued by the person serving it, with proof of serviceor that the defendant cannot be found. [Amended by 1953 c.749 §4; 1973 c.827 §10;1977 c.877 §11; 1979 c.284 §84]
52.130Appointment of persons to serve process or order. Whenever itappears to the justice that any process or order authorized to be issued ormade will not be served for want of an officer, the justice may appoint anyother person authorized by ORS 52.120, to serve it. Such an appointment may bemade by an indorsement on the process or order, in substantially the followingform and signed by the justice with the name of the office of the justice:
______________________________________________________________________________
Ihereby appoint A B to serve the within process or order.
______________________________________________________________________________[Amended by 1977 c.877 §12; 1979 c.284 §85; 1995 c.79 §13]
52.140 [Amended by1953 c.479 §4; 1977 c.877 §13; repealed by 1979 c.284 §199]
52.150 [Repealed by1979 c.284 §199]
52.160 [Repealed by1979 c.284 §199]
52.170Security for disbursements. If the plaintiff is a nonresident of this state,the justice may require the plaintiff to give an undertaking with one or moresureties, or an irrevocable letter of credit issued by an insured institution,as defined in ORS 706.008, for the disbursements of the action before issuingthe summons; and if at any time before the commencement of the trial thedefendant applies therefor, the justice must require such plaintiff to give theundertaking or irrevocable letter of credit. If the plaintiff is a resident ofthis state, the justice may, in the discretion of the justice, upon a likeapplication on the part of the defendant, require the plaintiff to give suchundertaking or irrevocable letter of credit. However, if the plaintiff is aresident of Oregon and makes the affidavit that the plaintiff is unable tofurnish the undertaking or irrevocable letter of credit as required by thissection, the giving of such undertaking or irrevocable letter of credit shallbe waived. [Amended by 1991 c.331 §14; 1997 c.631 §374]
52.180Form of undertaking; qualifications and justification of sureties; deposit inlieu of undertaking.(1) The undertaking may be substantially in the following form:
______________________________________________________________________________
“I,A B,” or “We, A B and C D, undertake to pay E F, the defendant in this action,all disbursements that may be adjudged to E F in this action.”
______________________________________________________________________________
(2)The sureties must possess the qualifications of bail upon arrest, and, ifrequired by the defendant, must justify in a sum not less than $50. A depositwith the justice of such sum as the justice may deem sufficient shall beequivalent to giving the required undertaking. If the undertaking or deposit inlieu thereof is not given or made by the time the action is at issue and readyfor trial on a question of fact, the justice must dismiss the action as forwant of prosecution. [Amended by 1995 c.79 §14]
ATTACHMENT
52.210Plaintiff entitled to attachment as in circuit court. In a civilaction in a justice court the plaintiff is entitled to the benefit of theprovisional remedies of attachment and delivery of personal property claimed inthe action, as in like cases in the circuit courts. All affidavits, orders andundertakings for these remedies are to be taken or made and filed with the justice,and the process is to be issued by and made returnable before the justice. Awrit of attachment or an order for the delivery of personal property claimed inthe action may be served and executed by any person authorized to serve asummons. [Amended by 1981 c.898 §41]
52.220Attachment proceedings conducted as in circuit court. The provisionsfor proceedings in the circuit courts on attachment and delivery of personalproperty shall govern in like cases in justice courts, except as otherwiseprovided. [Amended by 1981 c.898 §42]
52.230 [Repealed by1981 c.898 §53]
52.240 [Repealed by1981 c.898 §53]
52.250Attachment of real property prohibited. Real property or any interest thereincannot be attached upon a writ of attachment in a civil action in a justicecourt.
52.260 [Repealed by1981 c.898 §53]
PLEADINGS
52.310Pleadings governed by rules applicable to pleadings in circuit court. The pleadingsin actions in justice courts, the forms thereof and the rules by which thesufficiency of the pleadings are to be determined, shall be those prescribedfor civil actions in the circuit courts.
52.320Counterclaim exceeding jurisdiction; transfer to circuit court; time allowedplaintiff to plead; costs; effect of failure to tender costs. In all actionsinstituted in a justice court a defendant shall have the right to plead acounterclaim in excess of the jurisdiction of the court, whereupon the justiceof the peace shall, within 10 days following the filing of the answer, filewith the clerk of the circuit court for the county in which the justice courtis located, a transcript of the cause containing a copy of all the materialentries in the justice’s docket, together with all the original papers relatingto the cause. Upon the filing of the transcript with the clerk of the circuitcourt, the justice of the peace shall proceed no further in the cause, but thecause shall thenceforth be considered as transferred to the circuit court andbe deemed pending and for trial therein as if originally commenced in thecourt. The circuit court shall have jurisdiction of the cause and shall proceedto hear, determine and try the same. In the event of the justice’s failure tofile the transcript in the circuit court within the time specified, the judgeof the circuit court may make an order upon the justice to comply within aspecified time with the provisions of this section. The plaintiff in the actionshall have 10 days after the filing of the transcript in the circuit court inwhich to move against or reply to defendant’s answer. All costs incurred in thetransfer of the case, including the fee for filing the same in the circuitcourt, shall be borne by the defendant and must be tendered by the defendant tothe justice of the peace at the time of filing with the justice thecounterclaim, and the costs may be recovered by the defendant in the event thedefendant prevails. On failure of the defendant to pay to the justice of thepeace the required fee at the time of filing the counterclaim, or within twodays thereafter, the justice of the peace shall disregard the counterclaim ofthe defendant and proceed to try the cause as though the counterclaim had neverbeen filed. [Amended by 1979 c.284 §86]
TRIALFEES
52.410Trial fee.(1) Parties to judicial proceedings in justice courts are required tocontribute toward the expense of maintaining justice courts, or a particularaction or proceeding therein, by the payment of a trial fee.
(2)The trial fee in a justice court, for every trial by jury, is $17. [Amended by1979 c.447 §3; 1997 c.801 §133]
52.420Trial fee payable in advance; effect of failure to pay; recovery of fee asdisbursement.(1) The trial fee in a justice court shall be paid to the justice upon thedemand for a jury, and unless so paid the demand shall be disregarded and thetrial proceed as if no demand had been made.
(2)If the party paying the fee prevails in the action or proceeding so as to beentitled t