Suing and Legal Expenses: Costs are in the discretion of the judge hearing the case. While it is possible for a judge to award “solicitor-and-own-client” costs (meaning the opposing party would pay your full legal bill), these costs are rarely awarded. Most commonly, judges award a fixed dollar amount of costs which usually are only a small percentage of your actual legal bill.
Mediation and Need for a Lawyer: Any resolution you can achieve outside of Court by agreement (through mediation or other form of “alternate dispute resolution”) may be a better resolution than you would be awarded at trial and, likely, less expensive (assuming both parties are acting reasonable). Nevertheless, it is in your best interests to consult with a lawyer about your rights, obligations and potential outcome at trial before attempting alternate dispute resolution. That way, you can ensure that you have made a fully informed decision. It is also a good idea to have a lawyer prepare the agreement that details the settlement you have made to ensure that what you have agreed upon is actually carried out.
Small Claims Court: There is not officially a “Small Claims Court” in Alberta, however, many people use the term to refer to the Provincial Court – Civil Division. The Provincial Court has the jurisdiction to hear (among other things) lawsuits involving parties suing each other for money in the amount of less than $25,000.00. Anything over this amount must be heard in the Court of Queen’s Bench. The procedures in Provincial Court are less formal than the Court of Queen’s Bench.
How Long for a Lawsuit: There are too many variables involved in lawsuits for anyone to predict how long a lawsuit will take to be completed and some of the variables depend upon the actions or inactions of the other party involved in the lawsuit. The subject matter of the lawsuit, amount of evidence to be presented and the level of Court at which the matter will be heard all affect the length of time a lawsuit will take.
After Receiving a Statement of Claim: See a lawyer immediately. There are certain time limits that apply when you are served with a Statement of Claim. If you do not take action within the time limit, it is possible that you could automatically lose the lawsuit, this is called “default judgment”.