Can I have my Small Claims Court trial in French?
Because of COVID-19, the Small Claims Court has changed some of its processes. You can learn more in the question: How is Small Claims Court handling cases during COVID-19?
These French language rights are available in all court proceedings, including your Small Claims Court hearing or :
- you're allowed to file your court documents in French
- you have the right to ask the court to translate the Reasons for Judgement or any other document filed with the court into either French or English, at no cost to yo
If you live in Ontario and speak French, you have the right to have your Small Claims Court proceedings in French. Small Claims Court is where you sue someone for $35,000 or less.
The law doesn't use the words “French proceeding” or “French trial”. Instead, proceedings are referred to as bilingual proceedings.
You have the right to bilingual proceedings in all hearings in your Small Claims Court case, like motions, pre-trials, and conferences.