Obtaining a judgment

Obtaining a judgment

Obtaining a judgment from a person or a company can be a complex task with many steps.

The first step is to accurately identify the business that owes you. If there is more than one party or organization that owes you funds, it is important to add all parties at once. The cost of adding an extra defendant in the same claim, is typically nominal. It is usually advisable to add all defendants in a single proceeding.

If you carry on business through a trade name and the debt instrument is in a different name, it is important to identify the correct name to use on the notice of civil claim. A debt instrument is an asset that is used to raise capital or generate investment. An example of a debt instrument is a promissory note or a loan.

Once you have determined the correct names to use on the notice of civil claim and you have filed your action with the court registry, you wait for the other parties to respond to your claim.

There are specific requirements on how to serve each party, depending on whether the party is a person or an organization. You will want to refer to specific Supreme Court Civil Rules to determine how to serve each respective party.

If the party does not respond to your action within the time frame allowed, you can then file a default judgment.

The type of default judgment you file will depend on whether you are requesting a specific sum of money.

For instance, if you have a claim for a specific amount of money (ie: you are claiming damages because one or more of the parties has not paid you for services rendered), you can request the amount of money owed by one or more of the parties. You would file a default judgment seeking the amount you are owed, plus any interest on the amount owed.

The amount of interest will depend on the Court Order Interest Act.

You can also request “costs” under Appendix B of the Supreme Court Civil Rules.

If you have a claim in which the specific amount of money owed still needs to be determined by the Court, the Court will need to determine the amount you are owed, based on the evidence you tender in Court. In this case, the Court will grant a judgment that indicates that the amount of damages must be assessed. You will need to schedule an additional application to Court to determine the amount of damages you are owed by the other party/parties.

If you have a claim for the return of goods, you can ask the Court to enter a judgment ordering the party/parties to deliver the goods, or you can ask the Court to enter a judgment for the value of the goods.

If you require assistance with filing a judgment or you have questions regarding the type of judgment required, get in touch with us at info@saidilawcorp.com or call us at 604-930-9578.