How to sue someone in Ontario: 9 steps (Small Claims)

Legal information, not legal advice. This guide and our free tools give legal information. They do not give advice about your case. A licensed lawyer can give legal advice.

The answer

To sue someone in Ontario for $50,000 or less, you file a Plaintiff's Claim (Form 7A) in Small Claims Court, pay $108, and serve the defendant within 6 months. The defendant has 20 days to file a Defence. No Defence: you can ask for default judgment. A Defence: the court sets a settlement conference, then a trial if needed. The nine steps below name the rule, the form, and the fee for each move. The forms are free here, filled from your answers. For the full picture, read how Small Claims Court works in Ontario.

What to do

1. Check that the claim fits Small Claims Court: money or personal property, $50,000 or less, inside the 2-year limitation period, against a defendant who can pay. Use the free checker at /check.
2. Send a dated demand letter that states the amount, the reason, and the date to pay. Keep a copy and the proof of delivery. Write it free at /demand-letter.
3. Name the defendant exactly as registered: the corporation's legal name, or the person's name and the business name for a sole proprietor. Search the Ontario Business Registry before you file.
4. Fill the Plaintiff's Claim (Form 7A) with the dates, the places, the amount, and the relief you ask for, and attach every document you rely on. Fill it free at /build/7a.
5. File the claim in the right territorial division and pay the $108 fee ($228 for a frequent claimant). Toronto files through the Ontario Courts Public Portal; other locations file through Small Claims Court Submissions Online.
6. Serve the issued claim on each defendant within 6 months, by personal service or an allowed alternative, then swear and file an Affidavit of Service (Form 8A) for each one. Fill it free at /build/8a.
7. Count 20 days from service under rule 3.01. If no Defence is filed, file a Request to Clerk (Form 9B) to note the defendant in default, and request a default judgment (Form 11B) for a set amount, $94.
8. If a Defence is filed, prepare for the settlement conference the court sets within 90 days: serve and file your documents and the witness list (Form 13A) at least 14 days before, and serve an Offer to Settle (Form 14A) if you want the costs protection.
9. If the case does not settle, request a trial date with Form 9B and pay $308, then bring your witnesses and documents to trial. After judgment, enforce it with Form 20P and the tool that fits the debtor's assets.

Step 1: Is the claim worth suing over?

Four tests decide it. The claim must be for money or personal property. The amount must be $50,000 or less, not counting interest and costs. You must be inside the limitation period, usually 2 years from discovery. And the defendant must be able to pay.

The last test is the one people skip. A judgment against a person with no income and no assets can stay unpaid for years. Court fees for a contested claim to trial are $416 before service and your time. The free checker asks about the defendant's job, bank, and property for this reason. Read: is it worth suing?

Some claims belong elsewhere. A residential tenancy goes to the Landlord and Tenant Board. Minimum employment standards go to the Ministry of Labour, and an ESA claim bars a civil suit on the same matter. Read the forum notes on each situation page.

Step 2: Why send a demand letter first?

The rules do not require a demand letter. Send one anyway. It states the amount and a date. It gives the other side a clean way to pay. It also shows the court, later, that you tried. Many debts end at this step.

Write it in one page: what happened, what is owed, the date to pay, and what you will do next. Send it by a method you can prove: email with a read receipt, registered mail, or courier. Our tool writes the letter free: /demand-letter. A lawyer's letter on Mithril Law letterhead is $249: /demand-letter/lawyer. Read: how to write a demand letter.

Step 3: Who exactly are you suing?

The claim must state the full names of the parties and their capacity. A corporation is sued by its registered legal name, which is often not the name on the truck or the invoice. A sole proprietor is sued by the person's name, with the business name. A partnership is sued in the firm name.

A judgment against the wrong name is hard to enforce. Search the Ontario Business Registry for the legal name before you file. Read: naming the right defendant.

Step 4: How do you fill in Form 7A?

Form 7A is the Plaintiff's Claim. The rule says what it must contain: the names and capacity of the parties, the nature of the claim with the dates, places, and events, the amount and the relief, your contact details, an address for service on the defendant, and the documents you rely on, attached, or a reason they are missing.

Write the story in order, with dates. Say what was agreed, what happened, what is owed, and how you got to the number. Claim prejudgment interest from the day the money became due. Attach the contract, the invoices, the messages, and the photos. The free interview fills the form from your answers: /build/7a. The Filing Package drafts the Schedule A story and the exhibit index for $49. Read: Form 7A, explained and the step-by-step guide.

Step 5: Where and how do you file?

Start the action in the territorial division where the cause of action arose, where a defendant lives or carries on business, or at the court's place of sitting nearest to a defendant. Find your court: locations by city.

Where	How to file	Rule
Toronto	Ontario Courts Public Portal; hearing documents through Case Center	rr. 1.05.5, 1.05.6
Everywhere else	Small Claims Court Submissions Online, or the counter	r. 1.05.4

The fee is $108, or $228 for a frequent claimant with 10 or more claims in the same office that year. If your income is low, ask for a fee waiver under O. Reg. 2/05. Read: fees and the fee waiver. The clerk issues the claim and gives it a claim number. Serve the issued copy, not your draft.

Step 6: How do you serve the claim?

Serve each defendant within 6 months after the claim is issued. Personal service means a copy in the defendant's hands, or with an officer, director, or person in control at a corporation's place of business. After a failed personal attempt, you can leave a sealed copy with an adult at the residence and mail or courier a second copy the same or the next day. If you cannot find the defendant, ask the court for substituted service.

You can serve it yourself, or pay a process server. Then prove it: an Affidavit of Service (Form 8A) for each person served, sworn and filed. Without the 8A, the clerk cannot note a default. Fill it free: /build/8a. Read: how to serve someone in Ontario.

Step 7: What if there is no Defence?

The Defence is due 20 days after service. Count by excluding the day of service and including the last day; a holiday rolls to the next court day. The deadline calculator counts it for you.

No Defence: file a Request to Clerk (Form 9B) to note the defendant in default. For a debt or a liquidated demand, the clerk signs a default judgment (Form 11B); the fee is $94. For damages the court must assess, ask for an assessment; the fee is $308. Read: default judgment.

Step 8: What happens after a Defence?

The court sets a settlement conference within 90 days after the first Defence is filed. At least 14 days before, serve and file the documents you will use at trial and a List of Proposed Witnesses (Form 13A). Most conferences are by video [VERIFY source table].

Serve an Offer to Settle (Form 14A) before the conference. Do not file it. If the judgment beats your offer, you can recover up to double costs, plus up to $1,500 more if you represented yourself. The Settlement Conference Package builds the brief, the document book, and the 13A for $99. Read: what happens at a settlement conference.

If the defendant claims against you, a Defendant's Claim (Form 10A) arrives within 20 days after the Defence. You answer it with a Defence of your own, in 20 days.

Step 9: Trial, judgment, and collection

No settlement: request a trial date with Form 9B and pay $308. Trials are mostly in person. Bring the originals, your witnesses, and a one-page summary. A summons to a witness costs $33. Read: what to bring to trial.

The judgment is an order to pay. Collection is your work. Start with a Notice of Examination (Form 20H) to find the assets, then a Notice of Garnishment (Form 20E) for wages or a bank account, or a writ of seizure and sale (Forms 20C, 20D) for goods or land. Every step starts with an Affidavit for Enforcement Request (Form 20P). Your case record fills them: /claim/collect. Read: how to collect a judgment.

Deadlines and fees

Step	Deadline or fee	Rule
Start the claim	2 years from discovery	Limitations Act, 2002, s. 4
File Form 7A	$108, or $228 frequent	O. Reg. 332/16 s. 1(2)
Serve the claim	6 months after issue	r. 8.01(2)
Defence due	20 days after service	r. 9.01
Default judgment request	$94	O. Reg. 332/16 s. 1(2)
Settlement conference	within 90 days after the first Defence	r. 13.01(3)
Documents and Form 13A	at least 14 days before	r. 13.03(2)
Trial date request	$308	O. Reg. 332/16 s. 1(2)
Dismissal for delay	2nd anniversary	r. 11.1.01

Common mistakes

• Do not serve your unissued draft. Serve the claim the court issued.
• Do not put the claim in a mailbox and call it service.
• Do not forget Form 8A. Service without proof does not move the case.
• Do not sue "the store". Sue the registered legal name.
• Do not file the Offer to Settle. Serve it.
• Do not let the file sit for 2 years. The clerk dismisses it.

Questions people ask

How much does it cost to sue someone in Ontario?

Court fees for a Small Claims claim are $108 to file, $94 for a default judgment, or $308 for a trial date (O. Reg. 332/16, as stored 2026-01-06). A claim with no Defence costs $202 in court fees; a contested claim to trial costs $416. Service and any representation are extra. A winner can recover court fees and reasonable disbursements (rule 19.01).

Can I sue someone for $50,000 in Ontario?

Yes, in Small Claims Court, as long as the claim is for money or personal property and the amount is $50,000 or less, not counting interest and costs (Courts of Justice Act s. 23; O. Reg. 626/00 s. 1). A claim over $50,000 goes to the Superior Court of Justice, or you give up the excess to stay in Small Claims Court [VERIFY].

Can I sue someone without a lawyer in Ontario?

Yes. Most Small Claims Court parties represent themselves. A licensed paralegal or a lawyer can represent you (Law Society Act s. 26.1). Costs recovery for representation is capped at 15% of the amount claimed (Courts of Justice Act s. 29), so unbundled help is common: a check of your documents, a call, or a demand letter on letterhead.

How long does it take to sue someone in Ontario?

The rules set the early clocks: 6 months to serve, 20 days for the Defence, a settlement conference within 90 days after the first Defence (rules 8.01(2), 9.01, 13.01(3)). An undefended claim can reach default judgment in about 2 months. A contested claim to trial takes longer; practitioner estimates run 12 to 18 months [VERIFY].

What happens if I sue someone and lose?

The court can order you to pay the defendant's costs: court fees, reasonable disbursements, and a representation fee, capped at 15% of the amount claimed unless the court penalizes unreasonable conduct (rules 19.01–19.07; Courts of Justice Act s. 29). If the defendant made an offer to settle that beats the result, costs can double from the date of the offer (rule 14.07(2)).

Can I sue someone who owes me money but has no assets?

You can file, and you can win. Collection is the problem. A judgment against a person with no income, no bank balance, and no property can stay unpaid for years, and enforcement steps carry fees ($68 for a writ or an examination, $144 for a garnishment). Check collectability first with the free checker.

Do I need to go to court in person?

Settlement conferences are mostly by video, and trials are mostly in person. A party can ask to change the hearing method with Form 1B at least 30 days before; the other side can object within 7 days with Form 1C (rule 1.07, O. Reg. 3/25).

When to get a lawyer

Get legal advice if the claim is near $50,000, the facts are in dispute, the other side has a lawyer, or the limitation date is close. Legal services provided by Mithril Law — Jonathan Kleiman, licensed Ontario lawyer.

Free tools

• Check if your claim is worth it: /check
• Write a demand letter: /demand-letter
• Fill in your court forms: /build/7a
• Calculate your deadlines: /calculators/deadlines