Demand Letter in New Mexico

A demand letter asks someone to pay or fix a problem before you go to small claims court. Many judges expect one, and it is useful evidence. Your state's small claims limit and fee are shown below.

What New Mexico law says

Small claims limit	$10,000 in magistrate courts and the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, for tort, contract and landlord-tenant cases. These courts cannot hear domestic relations, malicious prosecution, libel or slander, land title or boundary disputes, specific performance of land sales, injunctions or extraordinary writs. The New Mexico Courts site lists magistrate and Metropolitan Court civil jurisdiction as $0-10,000: https://www.nmcourts.gov/ Source: NMSA 1978, § 35-3-3(A); Metropolitan Court pamphlet SH-101 (rev. 9/1/24)
Filing fee	$77 to file a civil complaint in Metropolitan Court. A jury request adds a $25 non-refundable jury fee and a $75 jury deposit. Sheriffs and private process servers charge their own service fees. Source: Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Fees, Costs & Filing; pamphlet SH-101

Small claims limit

$10,000 in magistrate courts and the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, for tort, contract and landlord-tenant cases. These courts cannot hear domestic relations, malicious prosecution, libel or slander, land title or boundary disputes, specific performance of land sales, injunctions or extraordinary writs.

The New Mexico Courts site lists magistrate and Metropolitan Court civil jurisdiction as $0-10,000: https://www.nmcourts.gov/

Source: NMSA 1978, § 35-3-3(A); Metropolitan Court pamphlet SH-101 (rev. 9/1/24)

Filing fee

$77 to file a civil complaint in Metropolitan Court. A jury request adds a $25 non-refundable jury fee and a $75 jury deposit. Sheriffs and private process servers charge their own service fees.

Source: Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Fees, Costs & Filing; pamphlet SH-101

Fill it in

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[today's date]

To: [person or business name], [their address]

From: [your name], [your address]

This letter is a formal demand for $[amount demanded] for [what happened, with dates].

[Short list of facts and attached documents: contract, receipts, photos, messages.]

Please pay this amount by [payment deadline] by [payment method].

If I do not receive payment by then, I intend to file a claim in [court name] without further notice.

[your name] [phone or email]

Demand Letter for other states · New Mexico tenant rights

General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.