1. Build a short case outline
Start with a one-page timeline: who made the agreement, when it was made, what each side promised, what happened, and the steps taken to resolve the dispute. Separate facts you personally know from information someone else supplied. Match each important event to a record or witness.
Your claim should let a person unfamiliar with the dispute understand why this defendant owes you this amount. Avoid insults, long arguments and unrelated history. If there are several defendants, explain the legal and factual basis of the claim against each one.
Official reference: Ontario: making a claim
2. Complete the current Form 7A
Download Plaintiff’s Claim, Form 7A, from the official forms directory. Enter the court location, full legal names and addresses, your contact details and the amount claimed. Use Form 1A if additional parties do not fit. Keep the parties’ numbering consistent across attachments.
In the reasons for claim, explain the key dates, place, agreement or duty, breach and resulting loss. Number longer paragraphs. Where an attachment is necessary, label it clearly and identify the form and parties. Do not leave the reader to reconstruct your claim from a pile of emails.
Official reference: Official Small Claims Court forms
3. Explain the money you are asking for
Prepare a calculation with separate lines for the unpaid balance, repair expense or other recoverable loss. Deduct payments, credits, refunds and amounts already recovered. Avoid counting the same loss twice. Explain the evidence supporting each amount and the reasonable steps you took to reduce the loss.
Request interest where appropriate, identifying a valid contractual annual rate or the applicable statutory basis. Court interest rates change; do not copy an old percentage. Distinguish the principal claim, prejudgment interest, postjudgment interest and costs. Do not add an arbitrary penalty or assume all your legal fees will be recovered.
Official reference: Rules of the Small Claims Court, O. Reg. 258/98
4. Attach, review and issue the claim
Attach copies of documents on which the claim is based, such as the agreement, invoice or payment record; explain if a supporting document is unavailable. Keep originals. Use legible, correctly oriented pages and an index for a large set. Check names, totals, page order and confidential identifiers before filing.
Submit through the correct filing route and pay the applicable fee or seek a waiver. Wait for the court-issued claim and file number. Keep the accepted version and issuance date; you will normally arrange service of that issued claim on each defendant. Issuing the claim is not the same as serving it.
Official reference: Rules of the Small Claims Court, O. Reg. 258/98
Your next-step checklist
Use this list as you work. Check marks apply to this visit only.
Sources for this guide
Where to go next
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General information for Ontario, not advice about your case. Legislation, court orders and current court directions govern. Get help with your situation.