(a) The judgment of a small claims court, or the judgment of the superior court after a hearing on appeal, may be enforced by the small claims court as provided in Title 9 (commencing with Section 680.010) of Part 2 and in Sections 674 and 1174 on the enforcement of judgments of other courts.
§ 116.820.Enforcement of small claims judgment; Fees and costs
Title 1. Organization and Jurisdiction · Chapter 5.5. Small Claims Court · Article 8. Satisfaction and Enforcement of Judgment · Last amended 2012 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 116.820 lets a small claims judgment be enforced under the same statewide judgment-enforcement law as any other court judgment, requires the clerk to collect and remit the associated fees to the Trial Court Trust Fund, and entitles the prevailing party to the costs of enforcement plus accrued interest.
Full Text of § 116.820
(b) The clerk of the court shall charge and collect all fees associated with the enforcement of judgments under Title 9 (commencing with Section 680.010) of Part 2. The clerk shall immediately deposit all the fees collected under this section into a bank account established for this purpose by the Administrative Office of the Courts. The money shall be remitted to the State Treasury under rules adopted by, or trial court financial policies and procedures authorized by, the Judicial Council under subdivision (a) of Section 77206 of the Government Code. The Controller shall distribute the fees to the Trial Court Trust Fund as provided in Section 68085.1 of the Government Code.
(c) The prevailing party in any action subject to this chapter is entitled to the costs of enforcing the judgment and accrued interest.
Plain-English Summary
Section 116.820(a) does not build a separate enforcement system for small claims judgments — it lets them be enforced the same way judgments of any other court are enforced, under Title 9 (commencing with § 680.010) and §§ 674 and 1174, which cover tools like wage garnishment, bank levies, and liens.
Subdivision (b) requires the clerk to collect the Title 9 enforcement fees, deposit them into a dedicated bank account, and remit them to the state, ultimately reaching the Trial Court Trust Fund. Subdivision (c) confirms that the prevailing party in a small claims action is entitled to the costs of enforcing the judgment, on top of accrued interest on the underlying judgment amount.
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.
2011 Law Revision Commission Comment. Section 116.820 is amended to delete obsolete language referring to a transfer “under subdivision (d) of Section 116.780.” In the past, subdivision (d) of Section 116.780 required a superior court to transfer a small claims appeal to the small claims court for enforcement after the superior court resolved the appeal. See 1994 Cal. Stat. ch. 587, § 3; 1991 Cal. Stat. ch. 915, § 26. Such a transfer was necessary before the municipal and superior courts unified, because the small claims court was a division of the municipal court, not the superior court. Now that the trial courts have unified, the small claims court is a division of the superior court. See Code Civ. Proc. § 116.210. Upon resolving a small claims appeal, it is no longer necessary to effect a transfer to the municipal court system. Accordingly, Section 116.780 was amended to delete subdivision (d). See 2005 Cal. Stat. ch. 706, § 8. Section 116.820 is now amended to reflect that development. 39 Cal. L. Rev. Comm. Reports 223 (2009).
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I collect on a small claims judgment in California?
Section 116.820(a) lets a small claims judgment be enforced through the same statewide enforcement procedures under Title 9 (commencing with § 680.010) and §§ 674 and 1174 that apply to judgments of any other court.
Do I get reimbursed for the cost of collecting my judgment?
Yes. Section 116.820(c) entitles the prevailing party to the costs of enforcing the judgment, in addition to accrued interest.
Amendment History
Added Stats 1990 ch 1305 § 3 (SB 2627). Amended Stats 1991 ch 915 § 29 (SB 771); Stats 1993 ch 158 § 3 (AB 392), effective July 20, 1993; Stats 1994 ch 926 § 2 (AB 2533); Stats 1995 ch 576 § 2 (AB 1225); Stats 1996 ch 1159 § 7 (AB 3471); Stats 2003 ch 159 § 3 (AB 1759), effective August 2, 2003; Stats 2005 ch 75 § 24 (AB 145), effective July 19, 2005, operative January 1, 2006; Stats 2009 ch 596 § 1 (SB 556), effective January 1, 2010; Stats 2011 ch 308 § 2 (SB 647), effective January 1, 2012.
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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