Morburger v. J. Reporting, Inc.
In a small claims suit over roughly $400 in unpaid court reporting invoices, the defendant argued on the eve of trial that the plaintiff failed to plead and prove compliance with the Fictitious Name Act, section 865.09, Florida Statutes. The Third District affirmed, explaining that the Florida Small Claims Rules impose only minimal pleading requirements — a concise statement of claim with any written document attached — and that additional pleading requirements cannot be imported into those rules. The court also held the fictitious-name objection, raised on the eve of trial rather than at the pretrial conference, came too late, and noted it would fail on the merits because noncompliance does not impair contract enforceability.
Key facts
- Morburger, a court reporting business, sued J. Reporting, Inc. in small claims court for approximately $400 in unpaid invoices for court reporting services.
- The defendant argued on the eve of trial that the plaintiff failed to plead and prove compliance with Florida's Fictitious Name Act, section 865.09, and that this deficiency prevented recovery.
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Why it matters
The opinion is a rare published explanation of how small claims pleading practice differs from ordinary civil litigation, useful to any practitioner defending or prosecuting county court claims under the Small Claims… — full analysis with a trial
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