Small Claims Court of Alberta : Question

[calgarywinning]

When you file a claim of action in small claims, do you have to name the correct legal corporation name for it to be a valid claim.

For example if there are two corporate companies and I name the incorrect Ltd, is my case valid or is my case immediately disqualified.

[tvp2003]

You need to name the correct party or else the claim isn't going to be valid against them. It is possible to amend your claim later on, but better to get it right the first time. I would suggest getting a corporate search just to make sure you have the name exactly right -- it'll also have their registered office listed so you know where to properly serve it.

If you aren't sure which of the two parties is at fault, name them both and you can always discontinue later.

Good reference guide: https://www.albertacourts.ca/docs/de...in-alberta.pdf

[calgarywinning]

Really appreciate this. Confirms what I thought. But what is the penalty for not getting the named corporation right, does it just look poorly on your case? Can't you just file again (obviously you can amend).

Also, once the claim is filed, there is a 20 day window within Alberta to respond. Is this the date from the filing in Provincial Court of Alberta - Claims or as the document you provided says 7 days from date of serving plus the 20 days. Even the courts own documents aren't clear on the timeframe. As a side note, the advice handed out at the court is they are not stringent on named Corporations, which made no sense at all. I.e. if you are suing Walmart Ltd, Walmart is good enough. But the law is the law and you can't sue a trade name.

Thank you for the article. It was excellent.

[Ducay]

20 days from serving. If serving via registered mail, it'll be 27 days from when you mail.

If it was 20 days from filing or issuance of the claim by the court, people would drag their heels and try taking forever to serve so the defendant has as little time as possible to respond.

[tvp2003]

Originally Posted by calgarywinning

Really appreciate this. Confirms what I thought. But what is the penalty for not getting the named corporation right, does it just look poorly on your case? Can't you just file again (obviously you can amend).

Also, once the claim is filed, there is a 20 day window within Alberta to respond. Is this the date from the filing in Provincial Court of Alberta - Claims or as the document you provided says 7 days from date of serving plus the 20 days. Even the courts own documents aren't clear on the timeframe. As a side note, the advice handed out at the court is they are not stringent on named Corporations, which made no sense at all. I.e. if you are suing Walmart Ltd, Walmart is good enough. But the law is the law and you can't sue a trade name.

Thank you for the article. It was excellent.

There is no penalty per se -- yes, you can simply just file a new claim (although you'll have to pay another filing fee). If you proceed without correcting it, you risk ending up with a judgment against the wrong entity (or worse, an entity that doesn't exist). However, if its a simple typo/revision in their name a judge can often fix that (especially if the other party has already been served and has given notice that a claim exists against them). That is probably why the clerk told you that "Walmart" may be good enough (small claims is meant for people who are self-represented and may not know all the intricacies of the legal process).

Ducay is right -- it would be 20 days from service. Note that even if 20 days pass with no response, that doesn't mean you're awarded judgment. The other side can effectively seek an extension, especially if there is a reason they were unable to respond within 20 days.