Is it rude to make a group chat without one friend?
Both at fault
The short answer
A smaller chat for a specific plan is normal, as long as it is not named or treated as the real one. The friend left out has a weaker claim if she declined every one of those plans.
The ruling
From the public record. Names are replaced with roles.
Small claims division
Case no.PC-2026-06128
The friend left out of the hiking chat v. The friends who named it the real chat
Filed 10/18/2026
- Plaintiff
- The friend left out of the hiking chat
- Defendant
- The friends who named it the real chat
Statement of claim
My four friends have a separate group chat called the real chat. They say it is just for hiking. I have said no to every hike for two years, but that is not the point. The point is the name.
Charge
Creation of a side chat titled the real chat, in a friend group that already has a main chat
Judgment
Both at fault
Both sides at fault in the real chat hiking dispute
Sentence
The defendants rename the side chat to something about hiking. The plaintiff joins one hike before the end of the season or stops asking about it.
How the court usually rules on this
The court accepts that friend groups form smaller chats for specific interests. What turns a side chat into an offense is a name or a tone that suggests the main group is the lesser one. The court also asks whether the excluded friend was invited to these plans before and said no. Most cases end with a renamed chat and an open invitation.
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