Delaware Breach of Contract Small Claims: How to Sue in JP Court

Someone made a deal with you, you held up your end, and they didn't hold up theirs. That's a breach of contract — and in Delaware, the Justice of the Peace Court handles these claims up to $25,000 without requiring a lawyer or complicated legal procedures.

What Counts as a Breach of Contract in JP Court

The JP Court classifies breach of contract claims as debt actions. You're alleging that the defendant owes you a specific sum of money arising from a contract — written, oral, or implied. Common examples:

• A service provider who took payment and didn't deliver
• A buyer who received goods and didn't pay
• A business partner who violated a profit-sharing agreement
• A personal loan that was never repaid
• A freelancer who missed contracted deliverables

Both written and oral contracts are enforceable in Delaware. The practical difference is proof: a written contract speaks for itself, while an oral agreement needs corroborating evidence — emails, text messages, witnesses, partial performance, bank transfers.

Statute of Limitations

Your deadline to file depends on what kind of contract was breached:

• General contracts (written or oral): 3 years under 10 Del. C. § 8106. This covers most service agreements, personal loans, and business deals.
• UCC sales contracts for goods: 4 years under 6 Del. C. § 2-725. This applies specifically to the commercial sale of physical products.

The clock starts on the date of the breach — not the date you noticed it, and not the date you gave up trying to resolve it informally. Settlement negotiations and demand letters do not toll the limitations period.

What You Need to Prove

A breach of contract claim has four elements, and you need evidence for each:

1. A valid contract existed. For written contracts, the document itself. For oral agreements, show any corroborating evidence: emails referencing the terms, partial payments that confirm the arrangement, text messages, or witnesses who heard the agreement.

2. You performed your obligations. Receipts showing you delivered goods, completion photos, service logs, time records, or bank statements showing your payments.

3. The defendant breached. Evidence that they didn't do what they agreed to: missed payment records, unfinished work, written admissions, or testimony about failed delivery.

4. You suffered measurable damages. The court needs a specific dollar amount, not a vague "they owe me money." Calculate exactly what you're owed: unpaid balance, cost to hire a replacement, out-of-pocket expenses caused by the breach.

Calculating Your Claim Amount

Start with the direct financial loss from the breach. Then add prejudgment interest under 6 Del. C. § 2301 — in the absence of a contractual interest rate, the legal rate is 5% over the Federal Reserve discount rate, accruing from the date of breach. For detailed calculations, see Delaware prejudgment interest rates.

If your total damages exceed $25,000, you can still file in JP Court by waiving the excess on your complaint. You permanently forfeit the overage, but you keep the simplified process. Claim splitting — filing two separate cases to get around the limit — is prohibited and results in dismissal.

Filing the Case

File Form CF01 as a debt action at a JP Court location within the defendant's county of residence if you want to recover court costs. Attach copies of the contract (or your best written evidence of the agreement), proof of your performance, proof of the breach, and your damage calculation.

If the defendant is an LLC, corporation, or partnership and wants to appear without a lawyer, it must submit a Certificate of Representation (Form CF50) to the Chief Magistrate, obtain approval before filing an answer, and pay the $20 annual fee. If it files without approval, the court can enter default judgment.

For the complete filing process — from demand letter through service of process to hearing preparation — the Filing a Small Claims Case in Delaware guide walks through every step with printable worksheets and a master deadline calendar.

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