Can I split my claim to stay under $15,000?
In the United States? This answer is Québec and Canadian law. The US side of this site answers different questions, state by state: different law, and different coverage. Go to the US side
Short answer
No. In Quebec, it is prohibited to split a debt or a claim into several cases of $15,000 or less in order to stay under the small claims limit. A claim split that way is not admissible.
In detail
The Gouvernement du Québec is explicit: “You cannot split a debt or a claim into several cases of $15,000 or less.” Claims split to get around the ceiling are in fact on the list of applications that are not admissible.
What is allowed, on the other hand, is giving up part of the claim in order to come within the limit · provided the reduction is stated in the application. The difference is clear-cut: giving up means permanently abandoning the excess; splitting means trying to claim it in two goes.
Remember that interest, the additional indemnity and costs do not count in calculating the ceiling. A claim of $15,000 that has generated interest remains admissible.
What to document
The complete, single calculation of your claim, with each item and its exhibit. If you choose to give up the excess, note the real total amount, the amount claimed and the difference: the waiver has to appear clearly in the application.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
Open the application Up to 3 files, no card · see the plans
And to put it in order: our free tools · number your exhibits, set your facts in date order, request a copy of your file. No account, and nothing leaves your browser.
Official sources
- Maximum amount that can be claimed · Gouvernement du Québec
- Applications admissible and not admissible in small claims · Gouvernement du Québec
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See all the answers · the full guide collection · Lire en français
What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.