Does a person need any evidence to file a small claims suit?

Yes and no. I’m sorry this is happening to you. If there is no evidence, then chances are it will be dismissed, but if it was me I’d sure want to be there to protect my interests.

Yep, he can make a complaint. He will still have the burden of bringing evidence up in court. But I suspect he’ll have to prove there is a strong likelihood that you stole his identity; he can’t simply assert it, and have them think it’s true.

Do you have any way to prove you didn’t do it?

@marinelife I plan to be there. I actually contacted my lawyer to see if we should move it to regular civil court so he can be there to put on a defense. Since I am forced to have a lawyer on retainer these days it is just one more thing.

@bolwerk I am not sure how I could prove I didn’t do it. He claims to have a copy of an application he says I filled out and signed his name to. That should actually prove my innocence since I didn’t fill out any applications or sign his name, but short of giving a handwriting sample, I am not sure how to make that happen. We were married at the time and I was on the deed to the house as well, which would mean I could take it out in my own name, so it would make no sense for me to take it out in his (and steal his identity right from under his nose), since we were both on the house and would both be liable either way.

This basically just one more way for him to harass me and it is incredibly frustrating. So far he has used child protective services, the 911 system, a repo man, the family courts, and now small claims court to try to get revenge. He has lost every time, but I am tired of having to pay to defend myself against false claims again and again.

@SuperMouse I am so sorry that he is like that. You could, if you were stilling willing to engage with him, file a lawsuit claiming harassment to recover your costs to defend yourself. He could then be ordered by a judge to leave you alone.

Wow, what a piece of work that dude is. I’m so sorry you have to deal with this! Anyone can sue anyone, for just about any reason, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be successful in getting a judgment against you. He is probably building up a pretty good case against himself, though, for you to sue him for harassment.

Bring all the documents for the 911 system, child protective services, repo man and family court to the small claims court as evidence of his repeated attempts to “get at you”. Has your lawyer filed a harassment claim against your Ex?
SuperMouse where were you when this alleged thief of Identity? If you were in a community property state, i.e. California, it make no sense.
Get your lawyer that you are paying to file a counter for harassment.

@Tropical_Willie I just looked it up and we are not in a community property state.

Show up and bring the evidence of how he has been harassing you and trying to make your life miserable.
So sorry you’re going through this.

@SuperMouse: depending when he alleges you signed it, perhaps it’s legal for you to sign your husband’s name to a document anyway, so you might be able to attack his very standing to sue you. Well, obviously there is the cost thing (again), but at least this doesn’t sound like something a competent lawyer couldn’t dispense with fairly easily.

I think @Judi may have the right idea, but it perhaps means you have to sue him and establish a pattern. Another time/money waster. :(

@bolwerk I don’t think it would a waste, if the lawyer is on retainer. Just let the lawyer take 33% of the value of the suit or have the Ex pay for your lawyer’s cost. Include “pain and suffering” with the suit.

In small claims its sometimes a good idea to counter sue if he owes you for anything. It puts him on the defensive.

I don’t think you need to be concerned about police showing up at your workplace, although a process server might. They generally tend or try to be discreet, because a lot of their business involves not scaring people away from them on sight, as a police uniform might do (to someone unlike you, with a guilty conscience).

Once the complaint is made, you might be able to request a summary judgment based on your presentation of facts to rebut whatever claims he’s making. For example, if the incident he’s complaining about occurred over five years ago and the results at the time (whatever transaction occurred) was known to him and acceptable to him at that time, then he essentially has no case. For another thing, if you received no financial gain from whatever he’s claiming, and if he also suffered no loss, then he has no case.

You might also decide to enlist the services of an attorney – perhaps even the District Attorney – and see about a charge of malicious prosecution against him, based on the phony charges that he has made in the past (but not this one, at least until it is adjudicated).

Pretty much like everyone else said, yep, he can. Now, whether he can provide evidence of ANY kind that would satisfy the court….

Could he be trying to get you to offer some kind of compromise?

It is impossible to prove a negative. Any “evidence” that is presented that is irrelevant or which can be discredited will undermine the claimant’s suit. The burden of proof is on the claimant and they can easily irritate the court with presenting piles of information with no probative value.
Judges are accustomed to recognizing frivolous lawsuits motivated by malice or grievances unrelated to the case before them.

Anyone may sue for just about anything. They must prove their case, though. The burden of proof in a small claims matter is by preponderance of evidence.

I would respond to the complaint by filing an answer at the court, and serving the plaintiff with the response, well before the court date. This lets the plaintiff and the court know that you intend to dispute the claims.

I know it’s not exactly easy to type up an answer. I looked at various answers on Google, went I went through my own court mess. The Clerk of Court may also be able to give you some pointers. Basically you want to state you have affirmative defenses, and address each line of complaint.