Small Claims Plainly

State guide

Kansas

This is general information, not legal advice. Kansas defines a small claim in K.S.A. 61-2703, in the code of civil procedure for limited actions. The statute says a small claim is a claim for the recovery of money or personal property where the amount or the value does not exceed $10,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and any damages awarded under K.S.A. 60-2610. The history line shows a 2024 amendment effective July 1. The statute also says a small claim does not include an assigned claim, a claim filed by someone who is not a full-time employee or officer of the real creditor, or a claim obtained through subrogation. Those exclusions keep many collection and insurance filings off this docket.

Checked against official sources on October 11, 2026. Rules and links change; confirm with the office listed before you act.

Try a ZIP like 30303, “Travis County” or “Columbus, OH”
Which court hears it
Small claims docket in the district court
Dollar limit we could verify
K.S.A. 61-2703 says a small claim is a claim for money or personal property that does not exceed $10,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and damages awarded under K.S.A. 60-2610. Assigned claims and subrogation claims are excluded.
Statute or court page
Official page →
Filing or self-help page
Official page →

The $10,000 figure is exclusive of interest and costs, and also exclusive of the special damages K.S.A. 60-2610 can add. Read 60-2610 before you add a penalty to a bad-check or similar claim, so you know what sits outside the cap. In a replevin case, the statute says the verified petition that fixes the property's value controls the value for jurisdiction. Write that value carefully. An assigned debt cannot be relabeled as the collector's own small claim. If you bought the debt, or an insurer paid it and wants to sue in the insured's shoes, 61-2703 says that claim is not a small claim.

A person, under the statute, includes an individual, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, fiduciary, joint venture, society, organization, or other association. Businesses may use the procedure when the claim is their own and is not an assignment or a subrogation claim. A full-time employee or officer may file for the business in the situations the statute allows. Anyone else who shows up to collect someone else's debt is outside the definition. District court clerks handle the filings. Kansas has no separate small-claims courthouse. The limited-actions docket is part of district court.

The Revisor of Statutes page is the official text and includes case annotations. Annotations are not the statute. Use them only as leads, and rely on the enacted subsections for the dollar line and the exclusions. This directory does not state a fee. Ask the clerk of the district court. If your claim exceeds $10,000 before interest, costs, and any 60-2610 damages, file it under the ordinary civil procedure. Do not split a single obligation into several small claims. The statute defines one small claim by the amount claimed or the value of the property sought.

Official resources in Kansas

K.S.A. 61-2703

Statute defining a small claim as not exceeding $10,000 and excluding assignments and subrogation.

Kansas Revisor of Statutes

Official statute library for chapter 61.

Kansas.gov

State portal for agencies, including the courts.

Key facts for Kansas

What to do next

  1. Do not file an assigned or subrogated claim on the small-claims docket.
  2. If you file for a business, be sure you are a full-time employee or officer when the statute requires it.
  3. List interest and costs separately from the $10,000 claim.
  4. Read K.S.A. 60-2610 before you add a statutory penalty.

Looking for your city or county in Kansas?

We haven't found official court-level pages for Kansas we can verify yet, so we don't show local numbers here rather than guess. Here's what to use instead, in order:

  1. General Start with the statewide information above. It applies across Kansas, but cities and counties can add their own steps, fees or deadlines.
  2. Call to confirm Ask the official office. They have the current local rule, fee and form.
    Kansas Revisor of Statutes
    Website →
    Phone not shown: use the contact page on the official website above.
    Your city or county office: Local governments →
    Not sure who handles it locally? USAGov's free help line, 1-844-872-4681, or the Kansas page on USA.gov can point you to the right office.
  3. Know the current info? Tell us and include a link to the official page. We check every tip before it goes up.

Helpful guides

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