Glossary
In Employment and Work, Tribunals and Courts
If you sue someone in court, you are called the plaintiff. The person you are suing is called the defendant.
If you do not pay what a court order says you owe right away, you will have to pay extra money called post-judgement interest. The interest continues to increase from the time that the judgment is made until you pay all the money that you owe.
In Family Law, Tribunals and Courts
A process server is someone who is in the business of serving or giving documents to a party involved in a court case.
To find process servers in your area, look in the yellow pages or visit canada411.ca and search for “process server”.
Registered mail is mail that is tracked from the time it is sent until it is delivered. It usually requires the person who accepts the delivery to confirm that they received the package by signing for it.
Seizure is when an enforcement officer lawfully takes land or personal property to pay for money owed because of a court order. Often, the property is sold and the money is used to pay the creditor.
In Family Law, Housing Law, Human Rights, Tribunals and Courts
Give or deliver a document to someone. Usually the law says how you can give or deliver the document, who has to get it, and the deadline by which they have to get it.
In Family Law, Tribunals and Courts
A settlement conference is a meeting between a judge, the parties, and their lawyers if they have any. The purposes of a settlement conference include:
- talking about ways to solve those issues without going to a trial
- if possible, obtaining the judge’s view of how the court might decide the case
- thinking about any matter that may help solve the case
A Sheriff’s Demand is when an enforcement officer requests money from the court clerk in order to give it to the creditor.
In Abuse and Family Violence, Family Law, Housing Law, Tribunals and Courts
A summons is a legal document that requires a witness to come to a trial or a hearing on a specific date to tell their part of the story.
In Help from Lawyers and Paralegals, Employment, Housing Law, Small claims court, Landlord and Tenant Board, Small Claims Court
A trial is a court hearing before a judge. At a trial, you share evidence to help explain your side of the story. You also explain to the judge what you want and why the judge should decide to give you what you ask for.
The person or organization you have the legal disagreement with also has time to share evidence and make their arguments. The judge then makes a decision.