Prejudgment interest compensates you for the time between when the debt became due and when judgment is entered. If you have a written contract that specifies an interest rate, you can claim that rate as long as it does not exceed the maximum allowed by law. Without a contract rate, you use the rate set by the Courts of Justice Act, which is currently three percent per year but changes periodically based on economic conditions.

Calculate interest from the date payment became due to the date you file your claim. For simple interest, multiply the principal amount by the annual interest rate, then divide by three hundred and sixty-five and multiply by the number of days. If payments were made during this period, you need to recalculate interest on the reduced balance from each payment date. The Ontario Courts website provides an interest calculator that can help with these calculations, though you should verify the results match your contract terms if applicable.

Interest calculations become especially complex when partial payments were made or when contracts contain ambiguous rate terms. Professional Small Claims Court assistance ensures your interest calculations are accurate and defensible, preventing challenges from defendants who may dispute your math to reduce what they owe.

You must make reasonable efforts to find the defendant’s current address because proper service requires accurate location information. Start with the last known address from your original dealings with them. Check public records such as property assessments, business registrations, or motor vehicle records if accessible. Search social media and professional networking sites for current employment or location information. Contact mutual acquaintances who might have current contact details.

If you genuinely cannot locate the defendant after reasonable efforts, you can ask the court for an order allowing substituted service, which permits alternate methods like posting notice at their last known address or publishing in a newspaper. However, you must first demonstrate to the court that you made genuine attempts to find them. Simply not knowing their address without trying to locate them is not sufficient for substituted service. Document every attempt you make to find them, including dates and methods used, as you will need to prove your efforts to the court.

Ontario Small Claims Court has jurisdiction over defendants who live outside Ontario if the matter has a sufficient connection to Ontario. Generally, you can sue in Ontario if the contract was made in Ontario, the debt arose from events that happened in Ontario, or the defendant conducted business in Ontario related to your claim. The defendant living in another province does not automatically prevent you from using Ontario courts.

However, consider practical difficulties with out-of-province defendants. Service is more complicated because Ontario service rules may not apply in other provinces, and you may need to use interprovincial service procedures. If you win your case, enforcing the judgment in another province requires additional steps to register your Ontario judgment there. The defendant may also challenge Ontario’s jurisdiction and argue the case should be heard in their home province. For significant claims against out-of-province defendants, consulting with a legal professional about jurisdiction and enforcement issues is advisable before filing.

After filing, the court stamps your Form 7A with a file number and returns copies to you for service on the defendant. You have six months from the filing date to serve the defendant, though this can be extended if you show good reason for the delay. Once the defendant is served, they have twenty days to file a defense using Form 9A. If they file a defense, the court will eventually schedule a settlement conference where both parties meet with a judge to discuss resolving the case.

If the defendant does not file a defense within twenty days, you can request default judgment, which means you win automatically because they did not respond. However, you still need to prove your claim amount at a brief hearing called an assessment hearing. The defendant can also file a defense late if they can explain their delay, which may set aside any default judgment you obtained. Most cases settle at the settlement conference stage, with only a small percentage proceeding to trial. The entire process from filing to trial typically takes eight to twelve months depending on the court’s schedule and whether the case settles.