Getting Started in Small Claims Court:

Question: How do I start a Small Claims Court lawsuit in Ontario and what should I include in my Plaintiff’s Claim (Form 7A)?

Answer: To start a Small Claims Court case in Ontario, you prepare and issue a Plaintiff’s Claim using Form 7A, then follow the filing requirements in Rule 7 of the Rules of the Small Claims Court, and focus your claim on the specific facts needed to support what you’re asking the court to order while avoiding unnecessary or irrelevant details that can hurt credibility or open the door to issues like a counterclaim or costs.   If you want help drafting the right narrative for your circumstances, Theresa Forrest, Paralegal can help you get organized for Form 7A and next steps so you’re not guessing, call (519) 902-4223 in Ontario to speak with a paralegal.

Commencing Proceedings and Retaining Legal Counsel for Small Claims Court

To get a lawsuit started in Small Claims Court, the preparing and issuing of the document known as a Plaintiff's Claim is required.  The Plaintiff's Claim document is a specific form, numbered and referred to as Form 7A, and is accessible online.  The main parts of the Form 7A document are quite easy to complete as such simply involves filling in a few blanks of information.  The more challenging aspect of starting a lawsuit is knowing what parts of the story to say and what parts of the story to avoid saying, if any.  There are various rules regarding the extent of information that is required.  The rules of process for starting a legal case in the Small Claims Court can be found in Rule 7 of the Rules of the Small Claims Court.

Although people may think of Small Claims Court cases as an informal legal process, and indeed there are many Small Claims Court cases that are relatively simple enough that minimal, if any, legal training is required, there are still many concerns to consider. Before starting a Small Claims Court lawsuit, questions to consider include:

• What if a counterclaim is brought against me?
• What if I lose the lawsuit?
• What if I lose and legal costs are awarded against me?
• What if the Defendant includes a 'third party'?
• What if I name someone wrong?
• What if the case is more complicated than expected?

The above questions, and many more, deserve careful review before haphazardly starting a lawsuit. Diligent review of these questions and the potential pitfalls are highly important before getting started.