2. Agree or disagree with each part of the claim
Question & Answer
I’m being sued by someone in Small Claims Court. What should I do?Even if you agree with all or part of the claim, you should still file a Defence.
On the form, explain why you agree or disagree with each part of the claim. For the parts you agree with, you can propose a payment plan for what you owe. For example, if you can’t afford to pay the money right away, you may ask for more time or to pay in instalments.
For the parts of the claim you disagree with, you can:
- come to an agreement with the , or
- let the court decide.
You may be told to attend a settlement hearing. The court will schedule this for you. If there are days when you aren’t available, you must tell the court when you file your Defence.
Terms of payment
The plaintiff gets to decide if they will agree to your terms of payment. If the plaintiff accepts your terms of payment, you must follow the payment plan. The court treats an accepted payment plan like a court order.
If they don’t accept your payment plan, the plaintiff can ask for a terms of payment hearing. At a terms of payment hearing, a judge decides:
- if the must pay
- how the debtor must pay
- when the debtor must pay
If you don’t follow the payment plan, you may be found in default. If this happens, you will have only 15 days to pay back the money. If you don’t pay within that time, the plaintiff can get a judgment against you. This means that they may get a court order that says you need to pay them money, and pay their court costs.
Keep careful records of any money you pay the plaintiff.
