Insights
Insights & Guides
Plain-language, lawyer-reviewed guidance for Ontario homeowners facing creditor and collection-agency lawsuits.
Personal Guarantee on a Merchant Cash Advance in Ontario: What It Reaches, and Your Defences Sued personally after guaranteeing a merchant cash advance? What kind of guarantee you actually signed, what a judgment on it can reach, and the defence questions to check before you concede. Co-Signer or Guarantor Sued in Ontario: Your Exposure and Your Defences Co-signed a loan or gave a personal guarantee in Ontario and now the lender wants payment? What you actually owe, and the defences that can reduce or end it. Credit Card Lawsuit in Ontario: What the Bank or Debt Buyer Has to Prove Sued over a credit card in Ontario? What a bank or debt buyer must actually prove — the agreement, the balance, the rate, the assignment and the timing. Canada's 35% Criminal Interest Rate: What It Means If You Are Sued Canada's criminal interest rate is now 35% APR. How it applies to Ontario loans, what counts as interest, and how it comes up when a lender sues you. How Long a Judgment Lasts in Ontario — and Stays on Your Credit Report An Ontario judgment does not expire after two years. Here is how long it can be enforced, how long it stays on your credit report, and how to clear it. Prejudgment and Postjudgment Interest in Ontario: How a Debt Grows Ontario's prejudgment rate is 2.5% and postjudgment 4.0% in 2026. How interest is claimed on a debt judgment, and what a defendant can question. Sued Over a Merchant Cash Advance in Ontario: Your Home and Your Defences An MCA funder is suing you and your company in Ontario. Here's how the personal guarantee reaches your home, and what a defence lawyer looks at first. Power of Sale in Ontario: The Timeline, and Where You Can Still Stop It Ontario's Mortgages Act gives you 15 days before a notice of sale and at least 35 days after it. Here's the real timeline, and where it can still be stopped. Were You Properly Served? Ontario's Service Rules for Debt Claims Claim left at your door, mailed to an old address, or emailed? Ontario's rules for serving a debt claim, and what bad service means for a default judgment. Settling a Debt Lawsuit Before Trial in Ontario: Offers to Settle How offers to settle, minutes of settlement and consent judgments work in an Ontario debt lawsuit, and what the costs rules do if you turn an offer down. Sued in Ontario Small Claims Court for a Debt: What Happens Step by Step Served a Plaintiff's Claim in Ontario? Here is the Small Claims Court path from the 20-day defence deadline through default, settlement conference and trial. Statement of Defence in an Ontario Debt Lawsuit: What to Put in It Sued for a debt in Ontario? What a Form 9A Small Claims Defence or Superior Court Statement of Defence must say, and the mistakes that lose winnable cases. Sued by Your Bank Over a Line of Credit or Overdraft in Ontario Behind on a bank line of credit or overdraft in Ontario? How the demand letter, set-off against your other accounts and a lawsuit unfold, and what to do first. Can CRA Garnish or Sue You for Tax and Benefit Debt in Ontario? CRA can garnish wages and freeze bank accounts without suing you first. How CRA and federal benefit-debt collection actually works for Ontario homeowners. Old Credit Card Debt Sold to a Debt Buyer in Ontario: Is It Still Enforceable? A debt buyer that purchased your old Ontario account can still collect and sue — but must prove it owns the debt. What to check before you respond. Frozen Bank Account in Ontario: What a Garnishment Notice Means and How to Respond A judgment creditor can freeze an Ontario bank account by garnishment without the 20% wage cap. What's protected, and how to respond right now. Sued for a Joint Debt After Separation in Ontario Your separation agreement says your ex pays the joint debt — the creditor can still sue you for all of it. What Ontario law actually says, and what to do. Judgment Debtor Examination in Ontario: What to Expect and How to Prepare Served a Notice of Examination in Ontario? Here's what a judgment debtor exam requires you to disclose, and what happens if you ignore it. Notice of Intent to Defend vs Statement of Defence in Ontario: Which One, and When In Ontario's Superior Court a Notice of Intent to Defend buys 10 extra days. In Small Claims Court it does not exist. Which document you need, and when. Default Judgment in Ontario: How to Set One Aside After a Debt Lawsuit Got a default judgment in Ontario after missing the 20-day deadline? Here's how to move to set it aside, the test judges apply, and why acting fast matters. Ontario Small Claims Settlement Conference: How to Prepare Settlement conference notice in an Ontario Small Claims debt case? Here's what's mandatory, what to file 14 days ahead, and how to actually prepare. How to Plead the Limitation Period in Your Ontario Statement of Defence Being sued on an old Ontario debt isn't enough — the limitation period must be specifically pleaded. Here is exactly what to put in your defence, and why. Wage Garnishment in Ontario: How Much Can Be Taken and How to Stop It Most creditors need an Ontario judgment first — and usually no more than 20% of your net wages can be garnished. The real limits and how to stop it. Being Sued by a Collection Agency in Ontario: Know Your Rights A collection agency is suing you in Ontario. Here is what is different from being sued by the original creditor, the defences that often apply, and the deadline you cannot miss.