Fulton County Small Claims Court Locations

Fulton County Magistrate Court, Civil Division

• Electronic filing via eFileGA — Fulton Magistrate Court requires parties to e-file documents into the court's case management system (register at www.odysseyefilega.com)
• Free e-filing at the public access terminals in the Clerk's Office, Suite TG-100 (fee applies for e-filing from home)
• Oral answer given in person at the Clerk's Office within the 30-day answer period (no telephone answers permitted)

Walk-in filing is available at 3 locations: Downtown Courthouse (Justice Center Tower, 185 Central Ave SW, Atlanta) — main, North Annex, South Annex.

Filing locations

3

Hours

8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday

Filing fee

$60

File without going in

Yes, online

Every location that takes a small claims filing

Fulton County accepts small claims filings at:

• Downtown Courthouse (Justice Center Tower, 185 Central Ave SW, Atlanta) — main
• North Annex
• South Annex

Any of these counters will accept the filing. The case is heard at the location the clerk assigns.

Is Fulton County the right court for your case?

Which court may hear a small claims case turns on where the dispute belongs, not on where it is convenient for you to go. It is normally:

• Where the defendant lives — or, for a business, where it has its place of business.
• Where the events you are suing about actually happened.
• Where a contract was to be performed, where the claim is about an agreement.

If Fulton County fits one of those, Fulton County Magistrate Court, Civil Division can hear it. If none of them fits, the case belongs in another county's court and filing here costs you the fee and the time before it is transferred or dismissed.

We cannot advise you which venue to choose. Where two courts would both be proper, either is a valid filing.

Going to Fulton County Magistrate Court, Civil Division in person

If you are filing at the counter rather than by mail or online, this is the shape of the visit.

1. Go during filing hours, not court hours. The counter is open 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. Clerks stop accepting new filings before closing, so arriving in the last half hour is how people end up coming back.
2. Bring the completed claim form and your copies. If your claim is based on a written agreement, a copy must be attached to the form. Bring a copy for the court, one for each defendant, and one for yourself.
3. Bring the fee, in a form this clerk takes. The filing fee is $60. Service is a further $50 per defendant.
4. Know the defendant's exact legal name and address. The clerk will not look it up for you, and a judgment against a trade name that is not the legal entity is difficult to collect on afterwards.
5. Expect the date to follow. Fulton County sets the first date after the defendant has been served, so the date follows by post rather than being handed to you.

Court staff can explain procedure and check a form is complete. They cannot tell you what to write in your claim, or whether to bring it at all.

Ways to file without standing in line

Fulton County Magistrate Court, Civil Division accepts a filing:

• Electronic filing via eFileGA — Fulton Magistrate Court requires parties to e-file documents into the court's case management system (register at www.odysseyefilega.com)
• Free e-filing at the public access terminals in the Clerk's Office, Suite TG-100 (fee applies for e-filing from home)
• Oral answer given in person at the Clerk's Office within the 30-day answer period (no telephone answers permitted)

Free help at the courthouse

Fulton County runs a self-help center for people filing without a lawyer. It can:

• Point you at the right form for your case type
• Check a form is complete before you hand it in
• In-person Self-Help Center (Suite TG-300) and Law Library (7th Floor, Justice Center Tower); Atlanta Legal Aid (atlantalegalaid.org) and the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation are referenced as outside resources. Judges and court staff cannot give legal advice.

Court staff can explain procedure. They cannot tell you what to write in your claim, or whether you should file at all — that is the line they are not allowed to cross, and it is the part most people actually need.

Common questions

Where is small claims court in Fulton County?

Fulton County Magistrate Court, Civil Division, 185 Central Avenue SW, Suite TG-100, Atlanta, GA 30303.

What are the Fulton County small claims court hours?

8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. Confirm before travelling — court hours change around holidays.

Do I have to go to the courthouse to file in Fulton County?

Not necessarily. Fulton County accepts a filing electronic filing via efilega — fulton magistrate court requires parties to e-file documents into the court's case management system (register at www.odysseyefilega.com); free e-filing at the public access terminals in the clerk's office, suite tg-100 (fee applies for e-filing from home); oral answer given in person at the clerk's office within the 30-day answer period (no telephone answers permitted).

Which Fulton County location do I file at?

Fulton County has 3 filing locations: Downtown Courthouse (Justice Center Tower, 185 Central Ave SW, Atlanta) — main, North Annex, South Annex. Which one is correct usually depends on where the defendant lives or where the dispute happened.