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{{Dial-A-Law TOC|expanded = smallclaims}}
==How do you start an action in Small Claims Court?==
First, you must complete a document known as a Notice of Claim. This document effectively begins the lawsuit once it is filed with the registry and delivered to the opposing party. You can complete the form a number of ways, including:
*by going to the Small Claims Court registry and asking for the document, or
*by telephoning or writing to the Small Claims Court registry and asking them to send you a copy (the phone number to contact is 250.356.1478)
*by downloading the form from the Ministry of Justice’s Small Claims Court website at [http://www.ag.gov.bc.ca/courts/small_claims/ www.ag.gov.bc.ca/courts/small_claims/].
*by completing the Notice of Claim and other Small Claims Court forms online at https://justice.gov.bc.ca/FilingAssistant/ and then printing yourself a copy of the form.
After the defendant has been served, you must complete a Certificate of Service to prove that the defendant has been properly served.
After you’ve filed your Notice of Claim, you have 12 months to serve it on the defendant. If your 12 months are just about up, you can apply to the court to renew your Notice of Claim and extend the time allowed for serving the defendant. (Once the 12 months have gone by, your Notice of Claims expires, but you can still apply to the court to try and renew it.)
There are several ways. The defendant may:
[updated November 2013April 2015]
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