Small Claims Court

The Small Claims Court handles money and property claims up to $35,000. It is designed to be accessible, but it is still a court: pleadings have to disclose a cause of action, evidence has to be admissible, and a judgment is enforceable against wages, bank accounts and property.

Proportionality drives everything here. For many claims the sensible question is not whether you could win, but whether the cost and time of winning leaves you ahead. We say so directly, and we will tell you when a demand letter or a settlement conference is likely to do the work that a trial would.

Typical matters include unpaid invoices and loans, deposits withheld, damage to property, defective work by a contractor, and disputes over goods and services. Defending a claim is equally common — including responding to a claim that is out of time, overstated, or brought against the wrong party.

We appear at settlement conferences and trials in the Small Claims Court across the Greater Toronto Area, and we handle enforcement after judgment where a defendant does not pay.