Small Claims Court
The Small Claims Court hears civil cases in which the amount of money or the value of personal property being claimed is $25,000 or less. It does not have jurisdiction over actions concerning land, actions against a personal representative of a deceased person, or actions for libel or slander.
The $25,000 limit came into effect April 1, 2006. Claimants who had claims exceeding $5,000 and who filed claims under the previous limit of $5,000 can apply to the court to have their claim limits raised if their cases have not yet been settled. Claims for which an agreement has been filed in court, a default judgment has been ordered, or a judgment has been issued following trial are not eligible for an increase in the claim limit.
The Small Claims Court sits in the same locations as the Territorial Court and can hear cases as part of court circuits to the communities. Every judge of the Territorial Court is a judge of the Small Claims Court.
Small claims may be filed in person, by mail or by fax in Whitehorse, Dawson City and Watson Lake. Claims sent by fax must be followed up by mailing original documents. Hours of operation are Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in Whitehorse, and 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Dawson City and Watson Lake.
The originating Claim (Form 1) or a Reply (Form 7), may only be filed by fax if accompanied by credit card information authorizing payment OR other arrangements have been made for payment of the appropriate filing fee.
Small Claims Court Information Booklets (also available from court registries):
-
What is Small Claims Court? (85 KB
)
-
How to Start a Small Claim (80 KB)
-
You Are Being Sued – What to Do? (159 KB)
-
Mediation and Pre-Trial Conferences (158 KB)
-
Getting Ready for Court (181 KB)
-
Judgments and How to Collect a Small Claim (207 KB)