SMALL CLAIMS
The Small Claims Court provides an informal and relatively fast and inexpensive process for settling disputes. To ensure the simplicity of the process, the court only handles monetary and property claims up to $25,000. If your claim exceeds this limit you may still wish to use the small claims procedure waive your right to claim any amount over the $25,000 limit. Parties may represent themselves but it is advisable to retain legal counsel for more complex matters. We aim to keep costs as low as possible to respect the limited dollar value of your claim.
SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURE
The next level of court is the Simplified Procedure in the Superior Court of Justice. This level deals with cases involving claims between $25,000.00 and $100,000.00.
The Simplified Rules process eliminates some of the steps that form the process for actions over $100,000.00. Generally, litigation following the simplified rules is quicker and less expensive. For claims just over $100,000, it may make more sense to lower your claim and select the simplified rules, resulting in legal costs savings.
COURT PROCESS
Once you have identified your claim assessed the amnount of damages, we can assist you in preparing a claim to be served on the other party and filed in court. If you have been served a claim it is important to seek legal advice right away. There is a limited amount of time (generally 20 days) during which you must be respond to the claim. If you do not respond, a judgement can be made against you and you lose all your rights to be involved in the case.
Before any trial, there are disclosure obligations (which means an exchange of information), and pre-trials to assist the parties in narrowing the issues or resolving all issues if possible.
Trials can be lengthy and costly. We work hard to try to find early cost-effective ways to resolve matters.
LIMITATIONS
In Ontario, the time you have between discovering a claim and pursuing it is governed by the Limitations Act. The basic limitation period is two years, although there are a number of exceptions. In some cases, your limitation period may be as little as six months so it is wise to contact legal counsel as soon as you become aware of a potential claim.