There are several different reasons why someone would need or choose to go to Civil Court. Some cases, such as big, complex ones, need an incredible amount of preparation before one can even consider filing it in Court. Others, however, are much simpler and can be all conducted by the applicant with no issue.
If you are thinking about disputing a claim in court and do not know where to begin, there is a lot of work ahead of you to be done. Hopefully, the next following topics may help you start organising yourself.
Contact a Lawyer
The first step to get going with your civil litigation claim, although may seem obvious, is contacting a civil litigation lawyer Calgary to help you with your case. It is highly inadvisable to jump into Court proceedings without consulting a professional first, even if you are only seeking legal advice. Even the simplest case, although may seem like no challenge, still has details here and there that you do not want to overlook.
For this reason, lawyers in Calgary will provide you with not only all of the information that you require but also offer their services to assist you throughout the entire process, saving you time and keeping your mind off unnecessary headaches.
Know Your Case
Whether you hired a lawyer or not, the next step to follow is studying your case. Again, having a professional with you will cut your research time significantly and will serve to clarify all of the questions that pop up while you get used to the legal world. Most of all, you need to know which court to send your claims to and what value you are asking for it. Hint: cases over $50,000 will be directed to the King’s Court Bench.
By understanding what kind of case you have, what regulations apply to you, which deadlines to follow and what to expect from a civil litigation lawsuit, you will be better equipped to go along with your representative’s strategies or to better defend your interests before the judge.
Gather Documentation
Pieces of evidence for your claims are the building blocks of your case. All of the arguments that you bring to the judge will lay on top of the solid foundation of documentation that you can bring up, and thus all of your demands will have a base on which to stand.
Depending on your case and your claims, you might need the help of an expert to access all of the paperwork needed, such as third-party ones, but it is not uncommon for people to have everything they need already on them.
After gathering everything, of course, you will also need to organise all of the documents in a chronological order that follows your claims, so it is easier to understand your line of thought.
Fill in The Forms
The government of Alberta provides a lot of resources for people who choose to go to court on their own. Among those resources, there are many forms and instructions on how to fill them – use this toolbox in your favour, and do not hesitate to consult professionals if you get stuck.
There are different forms depending on which area of law you are about to enter, and they will be your first official signal to the Judge that you need to address some civil litigation matters.
Serve Your Claim
After you have completed everything, it is time to put your claims in motion. A lawsuit needs at least two parties involved to function, and so you need to let the targets of your arguments know that they are now to respond to a civil lawsuit.
To serve your claim, you simply need to hand the paperwork to the people who will be your opposing party, either by delivering it to them yourself or asking another person to do it for you. Usually, a Process Server will be able to do it in your place, saving you the ordeal of meeting the respondents.
Go to Court
The final step is, interestingly enough, the start of the whole civil litigation lawsuit. After every document is gathered, every form is filled and all of the parties have been notified about your claims, it is time to finally address the situation before a judge.
No matter how simple your case is, going to court is always going to be a stressful situation, and so once again the first step in this list comes back to light: it is always better to be accompanied by a lawyer, not only to save you time and money but also to guarantee that you will be well represented, be able to present all of your arguments in court and have better chances of winning the case.