In each superior court there shall be a small claims division. The small claims division may be known as the small claims court.
§ 116.210.Small claims division
Title 1. Organization and Jurisdiction · Chapter 5.5. Small Claims Court · Article 2. Small Claims Court · Last amended 2002 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 116.210 requires every superior court to maintain a small claims division and confirms that division may still be called “small claims court” even though it is a division of the superior court rather than a separate court.
Full Text of § 116.210
Plain-English Summary
California once had a separate structure of municipal, justice, and superior courts, each with its own small claims process. Once those courts merged into a single superior court in every county, Section 116.210 kept small claims practice alive as a division inside that unified court rather than a freestanding court of its own.
The section also preserves the familiar name. Calling the division “small claims court” is a matter of label, not of separate legal identity — filings, hearings, and appeals in that division all run through the superior court that houses it.
Official Comment
The following official comments are published by the California Law Revision Commission (and, for a few older sections, its predecessor Code Commissioners) alongside the statute itself — not commentary from this site.
1998 Law Revision Commission Comment. Section 116.210 is amended to accommodate unification of the municipal and superior courts in a county. Cal. Const. art. VI, § 5(e). It is also amended to reflect elimination of the justice court. Cal. Const. art. VI, §§ 1, 5(b). Section 116.210 is also amended to expressly authorize continued use of the name “small claims court,” even though the small claims division is not a separate court.
2002 Law Revision Commission Comment. Section 116.210 is amended to reflect unification of the municipal and superior courts pursuant to Article VI, Section 5(e), of the California Constitution.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is small claims court a separate court from the superior court in California?
No. Section 116.210 establishes small claims as a division within each superior court. The name “small claims court” is permitted as a matter of convention, but legally it is a division of the superior court, not an independent court.
Does every county have a small claims division?
Yes. Section 116.210 requires each superior court to maintain a small claims division.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1990 ch 1305 § 3 (SB 2627). Amended Stats 1998 ch 931 § 38 (SB 2139), effective September 28, 1998; Stats 2002 ch 784 § 30 (SB 1316).
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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