What must the magistrate court do regarding complaint form and fees?

• A. Provide form and charge fee for the complaint, assess filing fee against complainant
• B. Do not provide form; no charge for complaint
• C. Provide form, do not charge for the complaint, assess filing fee against respondent
• D. Provide form, charge fee for the complaint; assess filing fee against complainant

Answer: (C)

Providing access to the complaint form without cost helps remove barriers to starting a case, while keeping the filing fee attached to the party who must respond to the claim. In this setup, the magistrate court should supply the complaint form free of charge and not charge for the act of filing the complaint itself, with the filing fee assessed against the respondent. This arrangement makes it easier for the complainant to initiate proceedings and ensures the party facing the claim bears the associated filing cost, rather than the person who is just trying to obtain the form.