The 20-day clock
Rule 9 of the Rules of the Small Claims Court gives you twenty days from the date you are served with the Plaintiff's Claim to file a Defence. The day of service does not count; the 20-day window begins the day after. If you were served on April 20, the Defence is due by May 10. If May 10 falls on a weekend, the deadline rolls to the next court business day.
If service was outside Ontario but inside Canada or the U.S., you get 40 days. Outside North America, 60 days. These extensions must be claimed in the Defence — if the Claim came through the ServiceOntario mail forwarding, count from the date you actually received it and include proof.
What a good Defence looks like
A Form 9A Defence is not a letter to the judge. It is a structured legal document the Plaintiff and the court will measure against the Claim paragraph-by-paragraph. The structure judges expect:
- Admissions. Paragraphs of the Claim that you agree with. Put these first — it signals good faith.
- Denials. Paragraphs you dispute, with a one-line reason why. “Paragraph 4 is denied. I was not contracted to repair the driveway.”
- Affirmative defence. Facts the Plaintiff has not mentioned that change the outcome. This is where you tell your story. Set-off, prior payment, waiver, limitation period, failure of consideration.
- Attached documents. Your contract, receipts, photos, messages, the demand letter response you sent.
Common defences and when they apply
- Payment. You already paid the amount claimed. Attach bank records.
- Set-off. The Plaintiff owes you an equal or greater amount that offsets the claim. Specify how.
- Breach by the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff did not perform their side — incomplete work, late delivery, faulty goods.
- Wrong defendant. You are not the party to the contract or did not cause the loss. Often applies where a corporation was contracted but the individual was sued, or vice versa.
- Limitation period. In Ontario the general limitation period is two years from the date the cause of action was discovered (Limitations Act, 2002). Old debts may be statute-barred.
- Accord and satisfaction. The parties agreed to accept less than the original amount as full settlement, and the Plaintiff is now reneging.
Filing and serving the Defence
File Form 9A online through the Small Claims Court portal or in person at the court counter. The filing fee is $43 (infrequent claimants) or $110 (frequent). Once filed, the court serves the Plaintiff — you do not need to serve directly. Keep the stamped copy. You will need it at the Settlement Conference and at trial.
Defendant's Claim — the counterclaim option
If you have your own claim against the Plaintiff (or against a third party who is actually responsible), file a Defendant's Claim on Form 10A. This is a separate document, with its own filing fee, but it is heard together with the Plaintiff's Claim. Many disputes are really two-sided, and a Defendant's Claim is how you recover in the same proceeding rather than starting a new lawsuit.
The Settlement Conference
Approximately six to nine months after the Defence is filed, the court schedules a mandatory Settlement Conference. This is presided over by a Deputy Judge or court officer and is off the record — what is said cannot be used at trial. Roughly half of Small Claims cases settle there. Go prepared with a written settlement brief (Form 13A) and realistic numbers.
Twenty days is short. Generate a Defence today, review it tomorrow, file by the deadline.
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BeProSe is a document preparation service, not a law firm. We do not provide legal advice. A licensed Ontario paralegal should review any Defence before filing if the amount in dispute matters to you.