If you cannot agree on a solution, the next step is to go to trial. You can do this online if you filed your claim online and no other documents have been filed directly with the court.
Check off the box that indicates the defendant is in default for not filing a Defence in the required time period. After the Request to Clerk is granted by the court, file a Default Judgment Form 11B at the court office where you started your claim you should do this online if you filed your claim online and no other documents have been filed directly with the court. You will receive a notice from the court if the default judgment was granted. If no Defence was filed in 20 days and the amount of money owed is not clear, you can ask a judge to order judgment in one of two ways: Fill out a Notice of Motion and Supporting Affidavit Form 15A and file it with the court do this online if you filed your claim online and no other documents have been filed directly with the court.
The judge will decide based on the documents that you filed. Fill out a Request to Clerk Form 9B and file it with the court to ask for an assessment hearing do this online if you filed your claim online and no other documents have been filed directly with the court.
An assessment hearing is like a trial, but the defendant is not in court. You must prove the amount that the defendant should pay. You can call witnesses and present evidence like photos or receipts. The judge will make a decision. Witnesses are the people who would help you prove your case by telling their story to the court if you go to trial. Gather any documents you plan to use to prove your case, such as contracts, pictures or expert reports.
File the List of Proposed Witnesses and any supporting documents with the court. Give the List of Proposed Witnesses and any supporting documents to the defendant s this is called serving at least 14 days before the settlement conference.
Read the Guide to Serving Documents for specific rules about how to serve documents. If you filed your court documents online, you must file a paper copy of each document the List of Proposed Witnesses and any supporting documents with the court at least 14 days before the settlement conference. These copies are for the judge to review.
Go to the settlement conference. Note: If you come to an agreement after the settlement conference, you can fill out a Terms of Settlement Form 14D to avoid going to trial. Getting paid if you win a case Winning a case does not guarantee you the creditor will get paid. Underlining all additions and identifying any other changes made.
Giving the amended claim to all parties this is called serving and complete a new Affidavit of Service for each party served. Filing the amended claim and Affidavit s of Service with the same court you originally filed with. You must swear or affirm that the statements in your affidavit are true. At least seven days before the motion hearing date, give all parties except any defendant who has been noted in default a copy of the form this is called serving. Complete an Affidavit of Service Form 8A for each party served.
Give each part who has signed the form a copy. File the form with the court you originally filed your claim with. Negotiation Before you decide to start a claim, you could send a letter or talk to the person who owes you money. This includes the value of all goods that the plaintiff is asking for in total, no matter how many defendants there are. A claim can also be brought in Small Claims Court under the Parental Responsibility Act, against a parent of a child under 18 years of age in certain circumstances where a child takes, damages or destroys your property.
Filers have the option of filing electronically instead of in-person or by mail. This service allows plaintiffs to prepare and submit all required forms online up to and including default proceedings. They are able to pay court fees online and will receive court-issued documents by email from the court. Where a hearing is required, hard copies of all e-filed documents must be mailed or delivered to the court. A litigation guardian is usually a parent or guardian. The litigation guardian must fill out a Consent to Act as Litigation Guardian [Form 4A] and file it with the court at the time the claim is filed or as soon as possible afterwards.
You can settle your case at any time before final judgment. For more information see the "Guide to Getting Ready for Court". A Plaintiff's Claim [Form 7A] commences an action. A Defendant's Claim [Form 10A] may be filed by a defendant to an action where the defendant makes a claim in the action against another person, or another party such as the plaintiff, or a co-defendant. These are discussed in Part Three of this guide.
The following is a list of the key information you should include in your claim:. The rest of Part One of this guide answers questions you might have as you complete your claim form. Together you and one or more other plaintiffs can sue one or more defendants. You must be very careful when naming the defendant. If the name you use on your claim is not exactly right, you may win your case but then be unable to take steps to enforce your judgment.
If, after judgment, you realize you have incorrectly named a defendant, you will need a court order to amend your judgment to correct the name.
You hired a roofer to put a new roof on your house. The roof leaks, so you sue "Zoro Carey Roofing. Now you find that the company's registered name is "ZC Roofing Ltd. The rules about names are strict, but they are not complicated. Here are some rules you may need to know:. Referring back to Example 1, the unsatisfied customer was suing Zoro Carey Roofing because that was the name on the invoice provided and Zoro Carey installed the leaky roof. There are some cases where both the company and the proprietor of the company would be defendants.
These are cases where the proprietor has something to do with the case, beyond just being the proprietor of the company. ZC Roofing Ltd. Zoro signs the guarantee and, by doing so, is agreeing to pay the debt personally if ZC Roofing Ltd. If the roofing supply company decides to sue, the defendants in the action could be:. For information on how to search a corporation or registered business name, you may contact the Companies Helpline, Ministry of Government and Consumer Services.
Please note that there is a fee for the search and the search will not be conducted over the phone. The Helpline can be reached at or toll free in Ontario at If the business you are suing is not incorporated for example, a sole proprietorship or partnership , you will need the correct name of the business and the address for service.
You may also wish to name the proprietor s or partner s as parties if you wish to obtain a judgment against them as well. Ann Carey has her own landscaping business. It is not an incorporated company. If one of her suppliers wants to sue her because she did not pay a bill, the supplier could name as the defendants:. You may use "c. If Ann, in the above example, was in partnership with her sister Joan, then the defendants could be:. If you make a claim against a partnership or proprietorship you may also use the firm name, and ask for an order that would be enforceable personally against a person as a partner or proprietor.
You should set out the reasons for your position in the claim. You must also attach to the claim form copies of documents that you intend to use to support your claim called "supporting documents". Keep your originals because you will likely need to hand them to the judge if you proceed to trial. If you refer to any documents that are lost or unavailable, you must explain on the claim form why this material is not attached. You should type or write clearly on the claim form a clear outline of the events that took place and the reasons you think you are entitled to a judgment.
It is up to you to decide how to explain your case. Often a good way to organize what you want to explain is in the order that the events actually happened. You may also find it helpful to use separately numbered paragraphs.
Give a full explanation of what happened including the dates and places involved. You do not have to use "legal language. The defendant should know exactly what the claim is about. Notice that in our example the address of the house and the date of the job are given. The roofer will have no trouble knowing which job this case is about. If you want to ask for interest on the money you are claiming you must ask for interest in your claim form.
If the rate of interest has been agreed to by the parties e. A supplier is suing a customer for payment of a bill. If no interest rate was agreed upon, you can ask the judge to award you pre-judgment and post-judgment interest at the rate as defined in the Courts of Justice Act.
Before judgment, the interest is called pre-judgment interest. After judgment it is called post-judgment interest. Note: Interest must be expressed as an annual rate e.
On your claim form you will indicate the pre-judgment interest rate that you are claiming, which will be pursuant to an agreement or the Courts of Justice Act , but the amount of pre-judgment interest will not be calculated until the date judgment has been awarded:. Sixty days had passed from the date the cause of action arose until the date judgment is awarded. If the defendant fails to file a defence, you may be able to obtain default judgment against him or her. In such a case, the plaintiff will have to appear in court so that a judge or a master can assess the amount of damages he is entitled to.
Read Whole Topics. All Rights Reserved. Web Design By Visible One. What happens if the defendant does not file an acknowledgment of service form or a defence? Matters to be considered before starting a civil action 1. Can I settle the dispute without going to court? Do I have sufficient legal basis to start a civil action? Will it be possible for my opponent to sue me back in respect of the same case? How and where can I get legal advice or representation including free or subsidised legal assistance?
Can I obtain what I want if I win the case? Can I afford the expenses? Can I afford the time? Is there any deadline for starting a civil action? What risks will I face if I start a civil action? Am I prepared to bear these risks? How to start a civil action 1.
What is the authority and what types of civil cases can be handled by the Labour Tribunal? What is the authority and what types of civil cases can be handled by the Small Claims Tribunal? Holidays include:. You should come to the commissioner with identification and the unsigned document. The commissioner will ask you to swear or affirm that the information in the affidavit is true and will ask you to sign the affidavit. The affidavit must be signed in front of the commissioner whether in person or by videoconference , since they will certify that it was sworn or affirmed in their presence.
NOTE: It is a criminal offence to swear or affirm an affidavit you know is false. Ministry of the Attorney General. About this guide: The information contained in this guide is simply an overview of the relevant legislation and rules of procedure. Where to get more information: The Ministry of the Attorney General has a series of guides to Small Claims Court procedures which are available at court offices and the Ministry of the Attorney General website at www.
What is a defence? Can I file a defence if I am less than 18 years of age? Can there be more than one defendant in an action? I want to dispute the claim — what do I do? How much time do I have to file my defence? How do I fill in the defence? What if I agree I owe the money? What if I agree that I owe the money but I cannot afford to pay it all right now? What if I only agree I owe part of what is claimed? If I make a proposal for terms of payment, should I start making payments right away?
What if I fail to make payments according to my proposal? What if the plaintiff does not agree with my proposal? What if I do not make the payments ordered at the terms of payment hearing? What if I think the plaintiff should pay? What do I do with my defence, after I have filled it out?
What happens next? What happens if I am noted in default? How do I ask for the noting in default or a default judgment to be set aside? I was served with an amended claim. Do I have to file an amended defence? How do I amend my defence?
How do I settle if I want to? What if I just do nothing? It is the form you will use to explain: what you disagree with in the claim, and why; what, if anything, you agree with; and whether you want to propose terms of payment for all or part of the amount claimed. Here are a few pointers on filling in your Defence [Form 9A] : Make sure that you state on whose behalf the defence is being filed.
For example, if there is more than one defendant, is the defence being filed on behalf of all of the defendants or just one defendant? Include names and contact information for all plaintiffs and defendants indicated on the claim. If the claim has more than one plaintiff or defendant you will need to attach an Additional Parties [Form 1A].
If your legal name is different from the name used on the claim, indicate the error and state your full legal name in your defence. If your address is listed incorrectly on the claim, put your correct address on the defence. If you do not provide your correct address, the court and the other parties will continue to send documents to the incorrect address and you will not know what is happening in your case.
Organize any supporting documents you need to file with the defence. If your defence is based in whole, or in part, on a document, attach a copy of the document to your defence e. If you no longer have the document, or cannot find it, state in your defence the reason why the document is not attached. In your defence, give clear, detailed reasons why you dispute the claim.
It is often helpful to use separately numbered paragraphs. If the claim has numbered paragraphs, you can write your reply to each paragraph using the same numbers used in the claim.
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