Are you asking about 5 a or 5 b? If so, 5a would suffice and would probably be preferable.
A “natural person” is defined by the form itself as “not a business or public entity”. Think of a real human being as distinguished from a legal or artificial person, such as a business (private) entity or governmental (public) entity.
If your putative defendant is, e.g. John Doe with a fictitious business name of John’s Siding - i.e. John Doe dba John’s Siding – you are still dealing with a natural person. In your claim, it is prudent to name him in both forms – e.g. “John Doe individually and dba John’s Siding” to ensure that a judgment reaches all potential assets. If you sue John Doe and a checking account is in the name John’s Siding, you should be able to reach it eventually but your effort may be longer and more difficult.
If you dealt with John Doe but contracted with John’s Siding. Inc., you contracted with a separate entity. A judgment against John Doe won’t give you the right to reach assets of the corporation. Many Small Claims judgments are uncollectible because the plaintiff fails to correctly designate. It is extremely difficult to correct this error post hoc.
I would suggest that you check the status of your prospective defendant in advance at the CSLB:
http://www.cslb.ca.gov/
Note also that, if work requires a license, it is both a civil and criminal matter to engage in unlicensed contracting in CA. The fact that you had a verbal contract with a presumably licensed contractor should raise a red flag for you and dictate that you check license status very early on.
If you do receive a civil judgment against a licensed contractor, enforcement is comparatively easy and inexpensive. Calif. Bus. & Prof. Code § 7090 confers the right to provide a copy to the State License Board and advise the Board that the judgment is unsatisfied and that there is no agreement for payment between the parties. Provide the judgment debtor’s license as well. The Board will give the contractor written notice that (1) the judgment must be paid or (2) proof of a payment agreement must be provided or (3) proof of the contractor’s bankruptcy filing must be provided within thirty (30) days or the license will be suspended.
Good luck.
