A. The rules of venue provided in Articles 41 through 45, 71 through 79 and 81, and 121 through 124 apply to suits brought in the parish court. B. The rules of venue provided in Articles 41 through 45, 71 through 79 and 121 through 124 apply to suits brought in city court, except that where these articles use the word "parish" it shall be construed to mean the territorial jurisdiction of the city court.
Art. 4851.Venue
Book VIII. Trial Courts of Limited Jurisdiction · Title I. General Dispositions · Chapter 2. Civil Jurisdiction · Enacted 1986 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4851 imports Louisiana's general venue rules, including the exceptions for specific kinds of actions and forum non conveniens, into parish and city court practice, treating a city court's own territorial jurisdiction as the equivalent of a parish for venue purposes.
Full Text of Art. 4851
Amendment History
Acts 1986, No. 156, §1.
Plain-English Summary
Venue, the question of which parish's courts a suit should proceed in, is already worked out in detail earlier in this Code, in the general rules and exceptions covering everything from actions on a contract to actions involving immovable property. Rather than rewrite those rules for the limited-jurisdiction setting, Article 4851 imports them wholesale.
For parish courts, the general venue rules, the venue exceptions tied to specific kinds of actions, and the succession-venue rule apply exactly as they do in a district court. For city courts, the same general and exception-based venue rules apply, along with the improper-venue transfer and forum non conveniens provisions, with one interpretive adjustment: wherever those imported articles use the word parish, that word means the city court's own territorial jurisdiction instead, since a city court's reach does not track parish boundaries.
That adjustment matters because a city court's territory can be smaller than, or cut across, a parish, unlike a parish court, whose territory lines up with the parish itself. Article 4851 keeps the substance of Louisiana venue law intact while translating the terminology to fit each kind of limited-jurisdiction court.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do parish and city courts follow Louisiana's general venue rules?
Yes. Article 4851 applies the general venue articles, their specific-action exceptions, and related provisions to suits in parish and city courts, rather than creating a separate venue scheme.
How does venue work differently for a city court than for a parish court?
The same imported venue rules apply, but wherever those rules refer to a parish, that reference means the city court's own territorial jurisdiction instead, since a city court's boundaries do not always match a parish's.
Does forum non conveniens apply in a Louisiana city court?
Yes, as one of the imported venue provisions under Article 4851(B), alongside the general rules for transferring a suit filed in an improper venue.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: venue rules parish city court LouisianaArticle 4851 Louisianacity court venue territorial jurisdictionforum non conveniens city court Louisianavenue exceptions Louisiana limited jurisdiction court