Oregon Small Claims Jury Trial: The $750 Threshold and What Defendants Should Know

When You Can Demand a Jury Trial

In Circuit Court small claims, ORS 46.455(3) gives defendants a right to demand a jury trial when the total claim exceeds $750. The process below describes Circuit Court cases; Justice Court actions are governed by ORS Chapter 52 and have separate procedures.

Under House Bill 2463 (effective January 1, 2026), the $750 figure now includes everything the plaintiff listed: the principal amount, any prejudgment interest, administrative fees, and litigation costs. Before HB 2463, there was ambiguity about whether those extras counted. That ambiguity is gone.

Claims of $750 or less stay on the mandatory small claims track. No jury trial is available.

How to Make the Demand

The demand goes on the same Defendant's Response form (SC-Response) you file within 30 days of service. Check the jury trial box, complete the rest of the form, and pay the appearance fee. The fee for a jury trial demand includes the standard small claims appearance fee plus a civil court transfer fee differential. Check the current Circuit Court fee schedule for the total.

You cannot demand a jury trial after the 30-day window closes. If you file a response selecting "deny and hearing" instead, you stay in small claims with an informal bench trial.

What Happens After You Demand One

A jury trial demand transfers the entire case out of the Small Claims Department and onto the regular circuit court civil docket. The process under ORS 46.465 works like this:

1. You file your response with the jury trial demand within 30 days
2. The court clerk notifies the plaintiff by mail
3. The plaintiff files a formal civil complaint within 20 days of the clerk's notice — a formal complaint, not the simple Notice of Claim they already filed
4. You file a formal civil answer within 10 days of receiving the plaintiff's complaint

If the plaintiff does not file a formal complaint within 20 days, the case is dismissed without prejudice, and you can request a refund of your jury demand fee within 30 days.

The Attorney Fee Risk

Here is the catch most defendants do not know about until it is too late.

Under ORS 46.465(4)(a), if you demand a jury trial, transfer the case, and then lose, the court is required to award reasonable attorney fees to the plaintiff — capped at $1,000 unless a contract or separate statute provides for a higher amount.

This is a mandatory fee-shifting penalty. The judge has no discretion to waive it. Even if you came close to winning, even if the plaintiff's attorney fees were minimal, the court "shall award" them.

In a regular small claims hearing, the losing defendant owes only the judgment amount. In a transferred jury trial, the losing defendant owes the judgment amount plus up to $1,000 in the plaintiff's attorney fees.

When a Jury Trial Demand Makes Sense

The transfer is worth considering if:

• The claim amount is large (closer to $10,000) and your defense is strong
• You have documentary evidence that a jury would find more compelling than a single judge
• You want formal discovery rights (depositions, interrogatories) that small claims does not allow
• The plaintiff's case relies on credibility, and you believe a jury of six would see it differently

It is hard to justify for claims between $751 and $2,000. The attorney fee risk, the additional filing costs, and the longer timeline often outweigh the strategic benefit.

The Alternative: Stay in Small Claims

If you check "deny and hearing" instead of demanding a jury trial, you stay in the Small Claims Department. An informal hearing before a judge — no formal pleading rules, no discovery, no jury. It is faster, cheaper, and you avoid the ORS 46.465(4)(a) fee penalty entirely.

The Oregon Small Claims Response Guide includes a decision flowchart comparing the jury trial demand against other response options.

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