St. Louis Small Claims Court: Where and How to File

Which court

St. Louis City and St. Louis County are separate courts, and this page covers only the City (22nd Circuit); the County is the 21st Circuit, clerk 314-615-8029. Under state law you can file only where at least one defendant lives, where a plaintiff lives and a defendant can be found, or where the events happened.

Where and how to file

Limit	$5,000
Court	22nd Judicial Circuit Court, City of St. Louis, Small Claims
Address	Civil Courts Building, 10 N. Tucker Blvd., 1st Floor, St. Louis, MO 63101
Phone	314-622-4044
Hours	Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Fees	$80.50 to file, plus $36 sheriff service per City defendant or $10.04 certified mail per defendant. These come from a court order effective 1 July 2021 that the court still links as its filing fees. Confirm with the clerk, because it is old.
Serving papers	St. Louis City Sheriff, certified mail, or a private process server paid directly. The Sheriff only serves defendants who live or work in the City, and fees are paid in advance by check to the St. Louis City Sheriff. The Sheriff's page lists $36.

22nd Judicial Circuit Court, City of St. Louis, Small Claims small claims page

Good to know here

Local Rule 4.6 says small claims are filed with the Circuit Clerk on the 1st Floor of the Civil Courts Building.
Filing for more than $5,000 here means giving up the excess, in this and any later case on the same issues.
Under state law you cannot file more than twelve other small claims in a calendar year, or file a claim assigned to you.
The Sheriff's civil process office is on the 8th Floor of the same building, 314-622-4851.

Hours, fees and locations change. Call the court or check its site before you go.

St. Louis Small Claims Court

Where and how to file

Good to know here

Sources

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