I recently filed in small claims court in Texas on an insurance company who refused to pay for my truck damages caused by negligence of the driver of another vehicle. His insurance company refuses to pay so I sued the company. I did not know I had to sue the driver first. Now the insurance company has filed a motion to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction, for Improper Joinder and Motion for Sanctions of Defendendant. Now I just want to drop my law suit against this insurance company or show up in small claims court and correct my mistake without it costing me much, then refile against the individual who hit my truck. I am a retired teacher on limited income. What is the correct statements to make and/or correct worded document to take to small claims court.
Hello and welcome,Is there a hearing scheduled in the near future on these motions or something else?
Yes. There is a hearing on motions on the 27 of this month in small claims court.
I see.You are not typically required to dismiss the case altogether and file against, but could file a motion to amend the petition/complaint with the court and attach the amended complaint setting out the proper parties and then serving the new parties.Here is a link to the rules of civil procedure that govern filing an amended complaint:http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_15If you are unable to file such a motion and amended complaint, then it would normally be best to appear at the hearing and request that the court permit you to amend the complaint. If the court does not permit you to do so for any reason and dismisses the suit, then you would need to file a new suit against the owners.
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Thank you and all the best to you,
Tina
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Will the sanctions against me be typically dropped once I file motion to amend the petition or will I probably still have to probably pay insurance company lawyers.
The insurance company has only requested sanctions I believe and the court has not awarded them to the defendant. Courts are typically reluctant to enter an award of sanctions against a pro se plaintiff, especially against an insurance company with attorney representing them, and in small claims court. So I would not typically expect their request to be granted if it clear to the court that you made an honest mistake.