[jcranmer]

The fee for filing a lawsuit by itself is $405. That's before any lawyer touches anything and you get to find out how high a lawyer's hourly rate is.

A simple, easy lawsuit will cost you in the same range as a house. Even if you win, thanks to the American rule of "each side pays their own attorneys' fees."

No, $700 is not worth a lawsuit.

[markdown]

Do you not have small claims court? They're usually free.

[BizarroLand]

Even if they're not free, they're pretty inexpensive. Worst case you have to pay to have the other side served.

Also, if you decide to use a lawyer and either you or the person who defrauded you lives in certain states, you can also tack on attorney fees:

https://www.trysmallclaims.com/blog/small-claims-court-attor...