Delaware Justice of the Peace Court, How To File and Defend a Summary Possession Action

Citation
Delaware Justice of the Peace Court, How To File and Defend a Summary Possession Action
Jurisdiction
Delaware (state)
Source
Official source
Original Source
https://courts.delaware.gov/help/LandlordTenant/ ↗

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The Justice of the Peace Court cannot award more than $25,000 on any claim or counterclaim. If more than $25,000 is sought, the counterclaim may be filed in the appropriate court within 60 days of the entry of judgment in the summary possession action. 25 Del.C. § 5711(b).

Alternatively, if the counterclaimant is willing to accept an award limited to $25,000, the counterclaim may be filed in the Justice of the Peace Court.

A third party action against a party who may be liable for all or part of the damages (along with, or instead of, the defendant) may be filed at least 5 days before the trial.

More information on filing a counterclaim or a third party complaint is contained in the booklet How to File and Defend a Civil Claim in the Justice of the Peace Court of the State of Delaware.

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How should I prepare for trial?

The booklet, How to File and Defend a Civil Action in the Justice of the Peace Court of the State of Delaware, provides general information on preparing for trial and what you may expect at trial. Also, remember, that summary possession cases may be complicated to present and the parties are encouraged to have an attorney represent them in court.

A few points to remember which are specific to Summary Possession cases are:

A copy of the rental agreement should be brought to court.

A landlord seeking possession should bring a copy of the notice of rental agreement termination which was given or sent to the tenant.

Any dates that may be important to your case (for example, the date you discussed the rental, the move in date, the date the first payment of rent was made, etc.) should be noted for easy reference in court.