Is your business being sued by a landlord or vendor in California? Here's how to answer it in time
If you don't respond within 30 days, the court can enter a default judgment against your business. SueEasy helps you get your answer prepared and filed on time, plans starting at $199.
What happens if your business doesn't respond in time
30 days, then a default judgment
Whether it's a landlord suing over back rent or a vendor lawsuit over an unpaid invoice, your business has 30 days to respond, starting when your registered agent is served, not when the papers reach you. Miss it, and the court can enter judgment automatically.
It keeps growing
A judgment collects 10% interest every year, and can be renewed after that. The longer it sits, the more it costs your business.
Personal assets can be at risk
If you signed a personal guarantee, or didn't keep business and personal finances properly separate, a judgment can reach beyond the company to your own accounts and property.
Check for a personal guarantee before anything else
A personal guarantee is a clause where you agree to personally cover a business debt if the company can't. It's often buried in a credit application rather than the main lease or contract, and it changes your whole strategy, so find it before deciding how to respond.
What it costs to answer a business lawsuit
Start free, see everything before you pay
- Full guided intake
- Contract terms and guarantee checked
- Defenses that may apply to your case
- Draft answer preview
Priced by how much is at stake in your case
- Amount claimed under $12,500: $199
- Amount claimed $12,500–$35,000: $699
- Amount claimed over $35,000: $1,299
- Complete answer, ready to file
- Court fee collected in one checkout
Extra confidence, priced by case size
- Everything in File it yourself
- Licensed CA attorney review
- Revisions before filing
- Attorney files on your behalf
Preview everything for free. You only pay to unlock the finished filing package, and the government filing fee is collected in the same checkout.
How to answer a lawsuit from your landlord or vendor in California
Tell us what's going on
A few quick questions: who's suing your business, how you were served, and whether you signed a personal guarantee. Then we pin down exactly how much time is left, since the clock starts when your registered agent is served, not when the papers actually reach you.
- 30 calendar days from when your registered agent is served
- An old or unused registered agent can mean the clock is already running without your knowledge
- Substituted service on an employee can still start the clock, worth confirming it was done properly
- Already past it? Check whether a default has actually been entered before assuming it's too late
We check your best response
An answer isn't your only option, and picking the wrong one can waste an argument. A "demurrer" challenges whether the complaint holds up legally at all, even if everything in it were true. A "motion to strike" removes specific improper parts of it rather than the whole thing. Most of these disputes are filed as a limited civil complaint, since business and commercial claims here commonly fall between $12,500 and $35,000. We help you figure out which response fits, and whether your business has its own claim, called a cross-complaint, worth filing back in the same case.
You file before the deadline
We prepare the response that fits your facts, filed on time so a default doesn't happen. That buys the time before a settlement conference or trial to negotiate, find a lawyer if personal assets are genuinely at risk, or work out a payment plan.
Check for a personal guarantee before you respond
Whether a judgment can reach beyond your business depends on a few specific facts. Worth checking before you decide how to respond.
Signs personal assets could be at risk
- You signed a personal guarantee on the lease or a credit application
- Business and personal accounts weren't kept properly separate
- The plaintiff is suing you personally, not just the business
- The contract has an attorney fees clause that could expand what's owed
What we check before you respond
- Whether a personal guarantee exists, and its exact scope
- Whether your business has a cross-complaint worth filing back
- Whether venue, service, or the amount claimed can be challenged
- Which response actually fits: answer, demurrer, or motion to strike
What a judgment against your business actually looks like
It grows every year
The court can order you to pay the full amount claimed. That amount adds 10% interest a year, for up to 10 years, and can be renewed.
Business assets are exposed first
A bank levy on business accounts, or a lien on business property, becomes straightforward for the other side once judgment is entered.
Personal assets, only with a guarantee
Without a signed guarantee or improperly mixed finances, only the business is exposed. With one, a judgment can reach your own accounts and property too.
Business sued by a landlord or vendor, your questions answered
SueEasy is a self-help legal technology product built by LegalForce RAPC Worldwide, P.C. Using SueEasy does not create an attorney-client relationship and does not provide legal advice. Check your county's court self-help center before paying anyone, many run debt defense clinics at no cost.