Default Judgment in a Texas Justice Court: Rules and Deadlines

A justice court is where most small money disputes in Texas are decided, and a default judgment is one of the more common ways those cases end. This is one of the procedures covered in how Texas justice courts handle small claims. This article explains when a justice court can enter a default judgment, the answer deadline that triggers it, how a defendant asks the court to undo it, and what a plaintiff does next to collect.

When a justice court can enter a default judgment

A justice court hears civil cases in which the amount in controversy is not more than $20,000, excluding interest, under Tex. Gov’t Code § 27.031(a)(1). Small claims cases are a type of justice court case, governed by Tex. Gov’t Code § 27.060 and by Part V of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure (Rules 500 through 510).

A default judgment is a decision entered in favor of one side because the other side did not respond. As the Legal Information Institute describes it, a default judgment is a ruling granted in favor of a plaintiff when the defendant fails to respond to a court summons or does not appear. In a Texas justice court, the trigger is the defendant’s failure to file a written answer after being properly served with the citation and the plaintiff’s petition.

Two conditions have to be met before the judge can enter a default judgment. The defendant must have been served in a manner the rules allow, and proof of that service must be on file with the court. A judgment entered against a defendant who was never properly served is open to challenge, because service is what gives the court authority over the defendant.

The defendant’s answer deadline

The event that opens the door to a default judgment is a missed answer deadline. Under Tex. R. Civ. P. 502.5, a defendant in a justice court case must file a written answer by the end of the 14th day after the day the defendant was served with the citation and petition. A defendant served by publication has longer: the answer is due by the end of the 42nd day after the citation was issued. The 14 days are counted from the date of service, not the date the defendant happens to read the papers, and the count runs on calendar days under Tex. R. Civ. P. 500.5.

The answer does not have to follow a particular form. A signed letter to the court that denies the claim, filed before the deadline, counts as an answer and stops a default from being entered. What matters is that something in writing is on file with the court by the deadline.

If the deadline passes with no answer on file, the case is in default and the plaintiff can ask the judge to enter judgment. Filing a case the right way at the start is what sets these deadlines running; the mechanics of filing a small claims case in a Texas justice court determine when and how the defendant is served and, in turn, when the answer is due.

How the judge enters the default judgment

When a defendant has not answered by the deadline and proof of service is on file, the judgment in a justice court case is governed by Tex. R. Civ. P. 503. The plaintiff asks the court to enter a default judgment for the amount claimed.

The court does not award money automatically just because the defendant is absent. For a claim that is for a fixed, calculable sum, such as an unpaid invoice or a written contract for a set amount, the judge can enter judgment for that amount based on the petition and supporting documents. For a claim where the amount is not fixed, the judge can require the plaintiff to prove up the damages, sometimes at a short hearing, before entering the judgment. A corporation does not need a lawyer to appear in justice court for this step, under Tex. Gov’t Code § 27.031(d).

The judgment the court signs states who won, the amount of money awarded, and which party pays the court costs. The date the judge signs the judgment is the date that starts the clock on every deadline that follows.

Setting aside a default judgment

A default judgment is not necessarily the end of the case. A defendant who missed the deadline has two routes to ask the same justice court to undo the judgment, both governed by Tex. R. Civ. P. 505.

The first is a motion for new trial. It must be filed no later than the 14th day after the judgment is signed. The motion explains why the defendant did not answer or appear and why the case should be heard on its merits.

The second is a motion to reinstate, used when a case was dismissed or a judgment entered for failure to appear. A court can set aside its own judgment and put the case back on the docket when the defendant shows a sufficient reason.

The standard a Texas court applies to a motion to set aside a default judgment generally looks at whether the failure to answer was an accident or mistake rather than intentional or the result of conscious indifference, whether the defendant has a meritorious defense to raise, and whether setting the judgment aside would unfairly harm the plaintiff. The judge weighs those factors; the rule does not guarantee any particular result.

Appealing a default judgment to county court

A separate path runs not back to the justice court but up to the county court. Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 51.001, a party to a final judgment in a justice court case may appeal to the county court when the judgment or amount in controversy exceeds $250, excluding costs. The procedure is set out in Tex. R. Civ. P. 506.

The deadline to appeal is 21 days. The 21 days run from the date the judgment is signed, or, if a post-judgment motion was filed, from the date the court denies the motion to reinstate, the motion to set aside, or the motion for new trial.

An appeal is perfected in one of three ways under Tex. R. Civ. P. 506: by filing an appeal bond, by depositing cash in the amount the bond would require, or by filing a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs for a party who cannot afford a bond or deposit. For an appealing plaintiff, the bond is $500; for an appealing defendant, the bond is twice the amount of the judgment.

Collecting on a default judgment

A default judgment is a money judgment, and a money judgment does not collect itself. A plaintiff who holds an unpaid judgment has several enforcement tools, and the deadlines above matter here too: a judgment is not final for enforcement until the time to set it aside or appeal has run.

One common step is a writ of execution to seize and sell a debtor’s nonexempt property, a power justice courts share with other trial courts under Tex. Gov’t Code § 27.032. Where the judgment debtor owns real estate, recording an abstract of judgment to create a judgment lien in Texas can attach the debt to that property. Texas sharply limits one tool that creditors rely on in other states: wage garnishment in Texas and what creditors can reach is generally not available for ordinary consumer debts, so most judgment creditors look to bank accounts and other nonexempt assets instead. Which tool fits a given case depends on what the debtor owns and where. The procedures, exemptions, and forms for each are covered in the linked articles.