First: the deadline is real
If you are served with a statement of claim in Ontario, you generally have 20 days to deliver a statement of defence (30 days if served elsewhere in Canada or the U.S., 60 days if served abroad). Miss it, and the plaintiff can note you in default — after which the allegations against you are deemed admitted and judgment can follow without your participation.
A noting of default can often be set aside, but at a cost in money, credibility and strategic position. Never let the deadline pass silently; a lawyer can usually secure an extension with a simple undertaking to defend.
What not to do
Do not contact the plaintiff to 'sort it out' without advice — admissions made in those conversations are evidence. Do not destroy or delete anything: emails, texts, documents and metadata relevant to the dispute must be preserved, and spoliation can be devastating at trial. And do not assume a weak claim will go away on its own; unanswered claims become judgments.
What your lawyer will do
Early case assessment comes first: the strength of the claim, available defences, limitation issues, counterclaims and third parties who should share responsibility. We then consider the procedural posture — is this a case to defend and mediate, to attack by motion, or to resolve commercially before costs mount?
Insurance is checked immediately: many commercial policies, homeowner policies and professional policies respond to claims people assume are uninsured. Notice deadlines under policies are short and unforgiving.
The road ahead
An Ontario action proceeds through pleadings, documentary discovery, examinations for discovery, mediation, pre-trial conference and trial — with off-ramps at every stage. More than 90% of cases settle. The settlements worth signing come from preparation: the party with the better-built case gets the better deal.
If you've been served, bring us the claim, the contract and the correspondence — and do it this week, not next month.
About the Author
Nooruddin Waliani — Principal Lawyer & Founder
Nooruddin Waliani is the founder of Waliani Law, practising civil litigation, real estate, private lending, criminal defence, family law and estates across Ontario. Called to the Ontario Bar in 2015.