small claims court

What is the name of your state? colorado
My former roommate advised me 1 1/2 weeks ago that if I wanted my belongings out of the state of Washington, then I would need to relenquish my much beloved pomeranianPooh to her. We had agreed to share her, and I have documentation to support this from Feb when we were going to meet in Utah,but decided against it due to road conditions in Oregon. She has since advised me that she is going to put all of my belongings in storage and sign it over to me, but give me no access to Pooh. I have documentation from the vets office showing me as owner, and her as roommate. I don't feel it is right that the burden of proof is on me, i have documentation to support my claim .I despise the phrase "possession is 9/10th's of the law". unfortunately, this will cause a tremendous financial strain on me have to travel back and forth to Washington, can I file in Colorado? or will the Colorado courts have any jurisdiction over this matter? since I have no other recourse but small claims court,I want to do it right.

Since the person you want to sue resides in Washington, your best course is to sue in Washington, preferrably in the county he/she resides.

As for why not Colorado, jurisdiction would be a problem because ultimately you will have to collect in Wa.

Also, I believe that you should consult an attorney as to what court you want this to go to. It is my understanding that rarely does small claims court award possessions, but rather a monetary amount, which is not what you are asking (you are asking for your dog back).

Most attorney's have a free consult, check one out. There is ownership problems with this post that only a lawyer probably could answer to the true fact of the law. (I assume that you don't have the dog per your post)

Good Luck,