Tools · Small Claims
Michigan Small Claims Checker (2026)
Enter your claim amount to see whether it fits under the Michigan small claims limit ($7,000), with the filing fee and whether a lawyer is allowed at the hearing.
Michigan small claims checker
The dollar amount you would ask the court for: the deposit, the unpaid bill, the repair cost. Interest and court costs usually sit on top of the limit, not inside it.
Enter your claim amount above to see it compared against the Michigan figures.
Where and how to file is procedure this page does not walk through; the official self-help resource is Michigan Legal Help. If your claim is a security deposit a landlord kept, the security deposit calculator shows the cap and the return deadline that apply to it.
- Your claim amount
- Not entered
- Michigan small claims limit
- $7,000
- Filing fee
- $30–$70
- Lawyers at the hearing
- Not allowed at the hearing
Plain-language summary, not legal advice.
Informational only, not legal advice, and not a prediction that any claim would succeed. Limits change and some states carve out claim types this summary cannot weigh. See the full rule and the citations on the Michigan small claims reference, cited to MCL §600.8401.
How the Michigan small claims limit works
Michigan's small-claims division hears claims up to $7,000 under MCL §600.8401, and it comes with a trade-off people don't always expect: no lawyers. Using the small-claims division means both sides waive the right to be represented by an attorney. It's designed to be handled by the parties themselves. If either side insists on a lawyer, the case gets removed to the regular district-court civil docket, where representation is allowed but the process is more formal. The 36th District Court (Detroit) states the $7,000 figure and the attorney-waiver rule directly. Fees are tiered by claim size ($30/$50/$70) plus about $16 per defendant for certified-mail service. The $7,000 ceiling took effect in 2024 (up from $6,500); the statute provides for periodic adjustment.
This checker compares your number to the Michigan ceiling; it is informational only and not legal advice, and it says nothing about whether a claim would succeed. For where to file and what the hearing looks like, use the official self-help resource linked in the result. The full rule and the citations are on the Michigan small claims reference.
Small claims checkers for other states
Same tool, each with its own ceiling and fee.