(a) Filing of declaration of compliance A claimant who is required to file a declaration of compliance with the fictitious business name laws under Code of Civil Procedure section 116.430 must file the declaration in each case filed. (Subd (a) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2007; adopted as untitled subd effective January 1, 1986.)
Rule 3.2100.Compliance with fictitious business name laws
Division 21. Rules for Small Claims Actions · Chapter 1. Trial Rules · Last amended 2007 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceRule 3.2100 requires a small claims plaintiff who must file a declaration of compliance with the fictitious business name laws to file it in every case, and directs the clerk to make that declaration available on an approved form, on the back of a court form, or built into the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk.
Full Text of Rule 3.2100
(b) Available methods The clerk must make the declaration of compliance available to the claimant in any one of the following ways:
(1) The declaration of compliance may be placed on a separate form approved by the Judicial Council;
(2) The approved Judicial Council form may be placed on the reverse of the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk or on the back of any Judicial Council small claims form with only one side; or
(3) The precise language of the declaration of compliance that appears on the approved Judicial Council form may be incorporated into the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk. (Subd (b) amended and lettered effective January 1, 2007; adopted as part of untitled subd effective January 1, 1986.)
Plain-English Summary
California law bars a person or business operating under a fictitious name from suing in that name unless the required fictitious business name filing is on record. Small claims court is no exception. Rule 3.2100(a) requires a claimant covered by Code of Civil Procedure section 116.430 to file a declaration of compliance in every case, not just once for a series of related claims.
Subdivision (b) leaves the mechanics to the clerk, but only within three approved options. The clerk can hand out a standalone Judicial Council form for the declaration, print the approved form on the back of the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk or another single-sided small claims form, or fold the declaration’s exact language directly into the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk itself. Whichever method a court uses, the substance the claimant has to attest to stays the same — only the paperwork format differs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has to file a fictitious business name declaration in small claims court?
A claimant required to comply with the fictitious business name laws under Code of Civil Procedure section 116.430. Rule 3.2100(a) requires that claimant to file the declaration in every case, not only the first one filed.
What form does a small claims fictitious business name declaration take?
Rule 3.2100(b) gives the clerk three options: a separate approved Judicial Council form, that form printed on the back of the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk or another single-sided small claims form, or the declaration’s language built directly into the Plaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk.
Does the fictitious business name declaration only need to be filed once?
No. Rule 3.2100(a) requires the declaration to be filed in each case the claimant files, not just the first time the claimant sues under the fictitious name.
Amendment History
Rule 3.2100 amended and renumbered effective January 1, 2007; adopted as rule 1701 effective January 1, 1986; previously amended effective July 1, 1991.
Source & verification. Rule text is reproduced verbatim from
the Judicial Council of California. Adopted by the Judicial Council of California.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: small claims fictitious business name declarationDBA compliance small claims court CaliforniaPlaintiff’s Statement to the Clerk fictitious name