Oregon Small Claims Online Filing: How to Use OJD eFiling and iForms

OJD Guide & File: Oregon's Free Online Filing Tool

The Oregon Judicial Department runs a free online system called Guide & File (also known as iForms) that lets you generate and file small claims documents electronically. It is available at courts.oregon.gov under Online Services.

The system works as an interactive questionnaire. You answer questions about your case — party names, addresses, claim amount, dispute description — and it generates the completed SC-ClmNotice form and other required documents. From there, you have three options:

1. eFiling — submit the completed forms directly to the court through the Oregon eCourt system
2. Print and mail — download the generated forms, print them, and mail to the court with your filing fee
3. Print and deliver in person — bring the printed forms to the clerk's window

eFiling is the fastest path. The court receives your forms immediately, and the clerk processes them without waiting for postal delivery. Payment is typically handled electronically during the submission process.

What You Need Before You Start

Have these ready before you log in:

• Your full legal name and mailing address
• The defendant's full legal name and address — for businesses, the registered entity name and registered agent address from the Oregon Secretary of State Business Registry
• The claim amount — the exact dollar figure, up to $10,000
• A description of the dispute — what happened, when, and what is owed
• Your good-faith collection efforts — you will describe these in the Declaration of Good Faith Effort section

The system generates the forms based on your answers. Review everything carefully before submitting — especially the defendant's name and address, since an error here can invalidate service later.

When Online Filing Does Not Work

The Guide & File system serves Oregon Circuit Courts. Not every small claims filing can go through it.

Justice Courts — County-run Justice Courts vary by county and are predominantly paper. Deschutes and Linn require notarization for mailed claims and cashier's checks or money orders for fees. If your county routes small claims to a Justice Court, check its local filing rules before submitting paper forms.

Local supplements — Some Circuit Courts require additional local cover sheets, debt disclosure forms, or mediation notices that the Guide & File system may not generate automatically. Check with the specific court's local rules to see if any supplements are needed alongside the eFiled forms.

File size limits — If you are attaching supporting documents to an eFiling, there may be file size limits (typically 50 megabytes per file). Large document sets may need to be split or compressed.

After You File Online

Once the clerk accepts your electronic filing, you receive a case number and a court-stamped copy of the SC-ClmNotice. This stamped copy is what you serve on the defendant — you cannot serve the unstamped version.

Download and save the stamped copy immediately. You will need to include it in the service packet along with a blank SC-Response form and the ORS 36.185 Mediation Information Notice for your county.

The filing fee is deducted during the eFiling process. If you need a fee waiver or deferral, you may need to file the Application and Declaration for Deferral or Waiver of Fees separately — check whether the Guide & File system supports this or whether a paper submission to the clerk is required.

The Oregon Small Claims Filing Guide walks through the full online filing process and identifies which courts accept eFiling and which require paper submissions.

See more Oregon guides →