diff --git a/structllm/client.py b/structllm/client.py
index 668fa08..947b40e 100644
--- a/structllm/client.py
+++ b/structllm/client.py
@@ -111,8 +111,9 @@ def parse(
             # If all parsing attempts fail, return raw response
             return StructuredResponse(raw_response=response)
 
+    @staticmethod
     def _prepare_messages(
-        self, messages: List[Dict[str, str]], schema: Dict[str, Any]
+        messages: List[Dict[str, str]], schema: Dict[str, Any]
     ) -> List[Dict[str, str]]:
         """Prepare messages with structured output instructions."""
 
@@ -148,7 +149,8 @@ def _prepare_messages(
 
         return structured_messages
 
-    def _extract_json(self, content: str) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
+    @staticmethod
+    def _extract_json(content: str) -> Optional[Dict[str, Any]]:
         """Extract JSON from content that might contain additional text."""
         # Try to find JSON within the content
         content = content.strip()
diff --git a/tests/test_structllm.py b/tests/test_structllm.py
index 4d80783..36df5f0 100644
--- a/tests/test_structllm.py
+++ b/tests/test_structllm.py
@@ -22,12 +22,14 @@ class CalendarEvent(BaseModel):
 class TestStructLLM:
     """Test cases for StructLLM client."""
 
-    def test_init_default(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_init_default():
         """Test StructLLM initialization with default parameters."""
         client = StructLLM()
         assert client is not None
 
-    def test_init_with_params(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_init_with_params():
         """Test StructLLM initialization with custom parameters."""
         with patch("structllm.client.litellm") as mock_litellm:
             client = StructLLM(api_base="http://localhost:1234/v1", api_key="test-key")
@@ -130,7 +132,8 @@ def test_parse_failure_returns_raw(self, mock_completion):
         assert response.output_parsed is None
         assert response.raw_response == mock_response
 
-    def test_prepare_messages_with_system(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_prepare_messages_with_system():
         """Test message preparation with existing system message."""
         client = StructLLM()
         messages = [
@@ -147,7 +150,8 @@ def test_prepare_messages_with_system(self):
         assert "JSON Schema:" in result[0]["content"]
         assert result[1]["role"] == "user"
 
-    def test_prepare_messages_without_system(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_prepare_messages_without_system():
         """Test message preparation without system message."""
         client = StructLLM()
         messages = [{"role": "user", "content": "Extract info."}]
@@ -160,7 +164,8 @@ def test_prepare_messages_without_system(self):
         assert "JSON Schema:" in result[0]["content"]
         assert result[1]["role"] == "user"
 
-    def test_extract_json_valid(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_extract_json_valid():
         """Test JSON extraction from text."""
         client = StructLLM()
         content = 'Here is the result: {"name": "test", "value": 123} and more text'
@@ -171,7 +176,8 @@ def test_extract_json_valid(self):
         assert result["name"] == "test"
         assert result["value"] == 123
 
-    def test_extract_json_invalid(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_extract_json_invalid():
         """Test JSON extraction with no valid JSON."""
         client = StructLLM()
         content = "This contains no JSON at all"
@@ -180,7 +186,8 @@ def test_extract_json_invalid(self):
 
         assert result is None
 
-    def test_extract_json_malformed(self):
+    @staticmethod
+    def test_extract_json_malformed():
         """Test JSON extraction with malformed JSON."""
         client = StructLLM()
         content = 'Here is broken JSON: {"name": "test", "value":} incomplete'