Sued in Kansas small claims court, but I reside in California; Anything I can do?

Question

Basically above. No judge hearing the case would award in the plaintiff's favor, but if I do not go, then I will have an automatic ruling against me. However, traveling to Kansas, between lost wages, travel expense and lodging will cost more. So you can see my dilemma. Is there anything I can do to have the case thrown out? Are there laws against suing outside of state in Kansas? How would I go about pushing those laws? If you can help, I would really appreciate it. Thank you.

Answer 1

Whether or not you can be sued in Kansas depends on what you are being sued for.   For example, if you signed a note and defaulted on it, you can be sued in Kansas if the contract so provides.  Unless this case falls within certain circumstances, the court does not have jurisdiction over you.  Definitely consult a Kansas lawyer and see about filing an Exception of No Jurisdiction Over the Person.  This can be done rather inexpensively and could result in dismissal of the lawsuit.  Whether or not you can recover your attorney fees will depend on Kansas law.

Answer 2

You would have to make a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction.  In general, small claims courts do not have "long arm" jurisdiction.  However, the court doesn't know there is anything irregular unless you make the motion.  You can hire a Kansas lawyer to do it or you can try to do it yourself.  Your assumption that lawyers are not allowed in small claims court is false.  They are not required but they are certainly allowed.  About half the cases involve lawyers.  All of the debt collectors, for instance, are represented by lawyers.