Presenting messages in court

Using text messages as evidence in small claims court

Last reviewed 2026-10-17 · 3 official sources cited below

Small claims cases often turn on texts: a landlord promising to return a deposit, a contractor agreeing a price, a buyer admitting damage. Small claims courts are usually informal, but you still need to show the judge what was said, when, and by whom.

Before the hearing

1. Export the conversation and make a transcript covering the relevant period (how to print text messages for court).
2. Highlight on a copy, not the original. Bring a clean version and, if allowed, a highlighted copy for your own reference.
3. Make copies. The California courts’ small-claims guide says: “Have the original paperwork for yourself, a copy for the judge, and a copy for the other side.” It also suggests organizing papers so you can find anything the judge asks for quickly.
4. Keep your phone charged and bring it, in case the judge or the other party wants to see the original messages.
5. Check whether you must exchange or file evidence before the hearing. Some courts require it. Look on your court’s website.

At the hearing

• Explain briefly how you made the printout: “I exported the chat from my phone on March 14 and printed it with the dates and times.”
• Refer to messages by page and number so the judge can follow.
• If the other side says a message is fake or out of context, the cover page’s date range, the message count and the source file’s SHA-256 hash help show the document is complete and traceable.

A note on California

California’s Evidence Code requires authentication of a writing before it is received in evidence (§ 1401), and defines authentication as evidence sufficient to sustain a finding that it is what the proponent claims (§ 1400). It also presumes that “a printed representation of computer information” is accurate, a presumption the other side can challenge with evidence (§ 1552). See California text message evidence. Other states have their own rules, often similar.

Sources

1. California Courts Self-Help Guide — Small claims: prepare for your trial
2. Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 901 — Authenticating or Identifying Evidence (Cornell LII)
3. California Evidence Code § 1552 (text via California.Public.Law, sourced from leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)

Sources were opened and checked on 2026-10-17. Laws and rules change; always read the current version.