Access to justice is a concern expressed by both the Chief Justice of Ontario, Roy McMurtry, and by the Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Justice, Heather Smith. The Small Claims Court is considered by them to be one forum where access to justice is available easily and at minimal legal cost. It is the largest and busiest branch of the Superior Court of Justice with 90 locations across Ontario and 370 judges. Nearly half of all civil proceedings are initiated in the Small Claims Court. Typical lawsuits are debt collection, landlord and tenant, wrongful dismissal, breach of contract, tradesmen disputes, and property damage. There are no family law or criminal law matters in the Small Claims Court.
The monetary jurisdiction of the court is $10,000. That means that a litigant cannot sue or recover more than $10,000. Many litigants who have claims in excess of $10,000 will “abandon” the excess so that they can proceed in the Small Claims Court. For example, if a litigant has a claim for $12,000 or $13,000, it is prudent to drop the claim down to $10,000 and proceed under the simple procedure of the Small Claims Court rather than the complex procedure of the Superior Court of Justice. In addition to less procedure, the technical requirements of court evidence are also relaxed. Hearsay evidence, for example, may be admissible and copies of documents, rather than originals, may be admitted as evidence if there is no question of their authenticity. A Small Claims Court judge is required to hear and determine all questions of law and fact “in a summary way,” that means decision-making without the legal ridgities of the Superior Court system. Thus, both plaintiffs and defendants are encouraged to represent themselves in the Small Claims Court where the court’s mandate is to make justice accessible to the public without incurring high legal fees.