Some states have a procedural tool—known as a suit on an account, a suit for an account, or a suit on a sworn account—that limits the evidence and pleading requirements for a creditor to establish its right to recovery on certain types of accounts in a lawsuit to collect a debt. These procedural tools are designed to reduce the cost of a creditor’s recovery of a debt on such accounts, and usually apply to transactions in which there is a sale upon one side and a purchase upon the other, and title to personal property passes from one to the other, creating a debtor-creditor relationship by a general course of dealing.
A sworn account is not an independent cause of action or basis for recovery, but requires the defendant to file a sworn denial of the account to avoid having the court grant judgment against the defendant early in the litigation process (summary judgment).
In Texas, a suit on a sworn account is a procedural mechanism available to creditors to streamline the process of debt collection in cases involving a clear debtor-creditor relationship, typically arising from transactions of sale and purchase where title to personal property is transferred. Under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 185, a creditor may initiate a suit on a sworn account by filing a petition that includes a systematic, itemized statement of the account, sworn to be accurate by the party or their agent. This sworn account serves to establish a prima facie case for the debt's validity. The defendant is then required to file a sworn denial to contest the account; failure to do so can result in a summary judgment against the defendant. This process is intended to simplify litigation and reduce costs for the creditor by limiting the evidence and pleading requirements to prove the debt, provided the proper procedures are followed and the account is eligible for such a suit.
