Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Tennessee

I had a storage unit that I ended up getting a couple of months behind on. I had talked to an attorney about the case and he said that he would take it to small claims court. The storage unit had in our contract that they had to send a certified letter if our property was to be sold. I never got a certified letter and had my parents address on the contract as well and they never got one. I really can't afford an attorney and was thinking of filing a suit at small claims court myself. I live in the state of Tennessee. As a private citizen can I file for discovery myself? That way I can get all of the documents that the storage company had about my account? If not, what can I do to get all the correspondence from them on my account? What else would I need to do to win my case?


Asked on 11/21/10, 11:49 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Dan Scott Scott Law Group, PC

You can file your case in general sessions court without an attorney. However, there is no formal discovery in general sessions court.

Best bet, file the suit, and at trial testify you never got a letter, have your parents testify as well. The storage place will have to provide the certified letter in order to overcome your testimony.

Also be prepared to testify what was in the unit and the value of it.

Note that the landlord will likely sue you for the amount you owed on the unit and perhaps for the balance of your contract depending on its terms. Be sure you are prepared for this before you file.

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Answered on 11/27/10, 2:57 am


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