Small Claim Procedure

In our country, the consciousness of people for law is heightening increasingly. More and more people utilize law to safeguard their legal rights and interests when encountering disputes such as contract dispute and dispute about the rights and interests of consumer. Most of those disputes relate to small sum of money and need deal with them rapidly and cheaply. Apparently, what we need is speed, simple and easy procedure to resolve these disputes.But the summary procedure of our country can't handle these disputes effectively because of its various faults. For example, the articles of summary procedure are not very specific and they are liable to be confused with ordinary procedure. Besides, it can't operate very well. Then, how to provide proper judicature service sufficiently for society and solve small claims in the everyday life of ordinary people is an important task that our judicatory can't resolve easily but have to approach. People are awaiting that the country reforms to our judicatory to provide the judicature and helps for ordinary people effectively.Small claims procedure—an easy, simple and valid procedure supply a valid method for the settlement of this problem. Small claims procedure originated from America and developed quickly after 1960s because of its high efficiency, flexibility and low cost. The first arm of small claims procedure is efficiency and it abides by the principle of balance between expense and income in procedure. Its establishment not only can improve the efficiency of procedure and realize popularization of justice, but also can relieve the pressure of court. So, the small claims procedure has become one part of civil procedure.However, there is some doubt and mistake on small claims procedure. Some scholars think that small claims procedure only can realize lower justice, and lead to the misapplication of litigation and the right of judge. In fact, these "flaws" can beavoided completely as long as we perfect some systems and procedures relating to small claims procedure. For example, we can make small claims procedure become a right by enduing the right of choosing procedure to litigants. Besides, improving ADR also can decrease the press of court and avoid the increase of small claims.Our country has no provisions on small claims procedure. But, some cities have small claims courts and develop very well. These tries have many faults because of lacking of relating code. So, establishing this procedure in our country by studying foreign successful experience becomes a task that must be resolved timely in theory and practice.In fact, establishment of the small courts in our country and the change of concept to procedure in citizens has been the base of the establishment of small claims procedure in our country now. Therefore, it is necessary and feasible to establish small claims procedure in our country. In the process of establishing, defining its scope, the mechanism of judge and the grade of judge, stipulating special principle of jurisdiction, simplifying procedure, endowing the right of choosing procedure to litigants and stipulating the conditions of transform from small claims procedure to ordinary procedure are the key to realize function of small claims procedure.