Sueing out of state?

What is the name of your state? CA

Here's my problem...I live in CA and I hired a DJ to for my wedding. I paid him in full upfront and he and I both signed a contract. Then he moved to Texas with no warning and he won't pay me back my money. I have a copy of the check cashed and a copy of the contract.

My question is how can I serve him a subpoena in another state? Can I mail it to him(certified)? And do I sue him in CA since that is where the contract was made and also broken or do I sue in TX? Thanks

I’m sorry to tell you that you sue him in TX, and that may answer all of your other questions too.

With a bit more information, there may be an argument for suing him in a higher court in CA, but you won’t be able to use Small Claims. That means more cost, and it would still give you a judgment that you had to domesticate in TX to enforce, which adds even more cost.

So you sue him in TX, which is a very debtor-friendly state. Getting your judgment is likely to be a good deal easier than collecting. If your claim is close to the jurisdictional limits of $7,500 in CA, you might just want to hire a TX attorney on a contingent basis and let the attorney do the work. If it’s considerably lower, you’re likely to find that you’re throwing good money after bad, whatever you do.