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If a court proceeding has been started against you, you have two choices. You can do nothing or you can respond to the proceeding and defend yourself. If you agree with the orders the other party is asking for, doing nothing is the cheapest and quickest way to handle the matter. On the other hand, if you only partly agree or completely disagree you ''must'' respond to the claim or you risk losing by default.
This section discusses describes basic elements of the Provincial Court process , but please refer to the resources on Legal Aid BC's Family Law website and the links posted at the end of this section. This section deals with the processes for responding to starting a court proceeding in the Provincial Court and the Supreme Court. For a more complete picture of the court process, you should read this section together with the section on [[Starting a Court Proceeding in a Family Matter|Starting a Court Proceeding]].
==The Provincial Court==
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If you're in Surrey or Victoria, a different process for ''[https://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4843 Early Resolution]'' registries will apply.
If you are not in Surrey or Victoria, and a court proceeding has been started against you in the Provincial Court, you are the ''respondent'' in the proceeding. The person who started the court proceeding by filing a [[PCFR Form 3 Application About a Family Law Matter]] is the ''applicant''. If you agree with the orders the applicant is asking for, doing nothing is the fastest way to handle things and you should let the applicant know that you're okay with the orders they're asking for. On the other hand, if you only partly agree or if you completely disagree with what the applicant is asking for, you should prepare a ''[[PCFR Form 6 Replyto an Application About a Family Law Matter|Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter]]'' in Form 36. This is a special form required by the [http://canlii.ca/t/85pb b8rn Provincial Court Family Rules].
===Limitations of the Provincial Court===
The Provincial Court is built for people who are not represented by a lawyer. There are no filing fees in this court, in some ways the forms are a lot easier to prepare, the rules of court are simplersimplified, and the court registry will sometimes take care of things like drafting court orders. The main disadvantage of bringing your case to the Provincial Court is that the authority of the court is limited. The Provincial Court can only hear applications under the ''[[Family Law Act]]'' on certain subjects, including:
#guardianship;
===Preparing, filing and delivering the Reply===
If you disagree with any of the orders the applicant is asking for in their Application to Obtain an OrderAbout a Family Law Matter, you must complete a form called a ''[[PCFR Form 6 Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter| Replyto an Application About a Family Law Matter]]'' and file it within 30 days of the date you were served with the Application to Obtain an OrderAbout a Family Law Matter. There is no fee to file a Replyto an Application About a Family Law Matter.
In your Replyreply, you can do one or more of the following things:
#consent to some or all of the orders the applicant is asking for;
#ask for any orders you want the court to make.
The form you must use is Form 36, set out in the [http://canlii.ca/t/85pb b8rn Provincial Court Family Rules]. Your Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter must be filed in the same court registry that the Application to Obtain an Order was applicant filed in. The court clerk will take care of delivering your Reply to an Application About a Family Law Matter to the applicant.
===The applicant's Reply to your Reply===
If you have asked for any orders in your Replyto an Application About a Family Law Matter, the application applicant has 30 days after receiving your Reply it to complete and file their own Replyto a Counter Application. The applicant's [[PCFR Form 8 Reply to a Counter Application|Reply to a Counter Application]] is also in Form 38. The applicant may:
#consent to some or all of the orders you're asking for; and,
#object to some or all of the orders you're asking for.
Very few applicants bother to file a Reply is to a Counter Application of their own. Most applicants only go to the trouble of preparing a Reply one if there was something really unusual or unexpected in your Form 6 Replyto an Application About a Family Law Matter, and any counterclaims you made.
===The next steps===
==The Supreme Court==
* [https://www.provincialcourt.bc.ca Provincial Court website]
* Provincial Court: [https://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4498 Family Cases]
* Legal Services SocietyAid BC's Family Law website's information page pages: ** [https://www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4652 "I've been served with a court form"]** [httphttps://wwwfamily.clicklawlegalaid.bc.ca/resourcebc-legal-system/2268 Justice Education Society's website for BC Supreme Court]* [http:ive-been-served-court-form/served-provincial-court-form/www.clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/4395 Online Parenting After Separation Course from Justice Education Societyrespond-to-form-3 "Respond if you've been served with Form 3"]