I Am Being Sued — What Should I Expect?

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A lawsuit for loss or damages caused to another person or another person's property is known as a civil claim. If you are being sued in a civil claim, you will receive court papers: a Notice of Claim if you are being sued in Small Claims Court or a Notice of Civil Claim if you are being sued in BC Supreme Court. Different forms are used in family disputes.

Lawsuits in Small Claims Court are limited to claims of up to $25,000. There is no money limit to claims in BC Supreme Court.

Small Claims Court[edit]

First steps[edit]

If you receive a Small Claims Court Notice of Claim and you don't agree with it:

  1. Complete the Reply that should have been served on you with the Notice of Claim. In your Reply, say why you don't agree with the claim. If you don't get a blank Reply with the Notice of Claim, you can get one at any Provincial Court registry. Small Claims forms are also available online from the Ministry of Justice website.
  2. Drop off the Reply or mail it to the Small Claims registry named on the Notice of Claim within 14 days of receiving the Notice of Claim. The cost for filing a Reply is $26 for a claim of up to $3,000 and $50 for a claim over $3,000.
  3. The Reply form also has a section for making a counterclaim against the claimant. To make a counterclaim you must also have a claim against the claimant suing you. Filing a counterclaim costs extra. It costs $100 to make a counterclaim for $3,000 or less, and $156 for a counterclaim over $3,000.

What happens next[edit]

In Small Claims Court, you will receive a Notice of Settlement Conference. A Settlement Conference is an opportunity for you and the claimant to meet with a judge to see if you can agree to resolve the claim. The judge at a settlement conference is only there to help the parties agree on a settlement. He or she cannot impose an agreement on parties who are not able to reach agreement.

If the settlement conference doesn't resolve the case, you will be given a Notice of Trial. At trial, the claimant will present his or her case, and you will be given a chance to question the claimant and their witnesses and to present your own case. The trial judge will then decide who wins.

Small Claims Court now offers mediation of many kinds of cases. If yours is one of these cases, a trained independent person will meet with you and the other parties in your case to see if you can agree on a way of resolving it. Ask someone at the court registry where you file your documents if there could be mediation in your case.

Supreme Court[edit]

First steps[edit]

If you receive a Supreme Court Notice of Civil Claim:

  1. Obtain and complete a Response to Civil Claim' form. Supreme Court forms are available online through the Clicklaw website "Laws, Cases & Rules" page; click on "BC Supreme Court Civil Forms." You are looking for Form 2.
  2. Drop off the Response to Civil Claim at (or fax or mail it to) the Supreme Court registry named on the Notice to Civil Claim, within 21 days of when you were served with the Notice of Civil Claim. It will cost $25 to file a Response to Civil Claim.
  3. If you have a claim to make against the person suing you (and others), you can file a Counterclaim form. This must be done in the same time for filing your Response to Civil Claim. The Counterclaim form is also available online. You are looking for Form 3.

What happens next[edit]

In Supreme Court, the process is more complex than in Small Claims Court. During the next stage of a Supreme Court proceeding, known as discovery, the parties exchange documents and may cross-examine each other outside of court. Finally, if the case is not resolved, it will proceed to trial.

In Supreme Court the parties are responsible for scheduling steps in the proceeding themselves, including examinations for discovery, pre-trial procedures such as a case management conference and a trial management conference, as well as the trial.

Where to get help[edit]

See the Resource List in this Guide for a list of helpful resources. Your best bets are:

Before meeting with a lawyer or advocate, complete the form Preparing for Your Interview included in this Guide. Make sure you bring copies of all documents relating to your case.

This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by John Bilawich, February 2013.


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