Do I have the right to represent myself in court?
Short answer
Yes. In Quebec, any natural person may represent themselves in civil, family or criminal matters, and in the Small Claims Division of the Court of Quebec natural persons must act on their own behalf (art. 542 of the Code of Civil Procedure).
In detail
The Government of Quebec notes that businesses and organizations, for their part, must retain a lawyer, and that in Small Claims representation by a lawyer is not allowed at the hearing, although you may give a mandate free of charge to your spouse, a relative, a person connected to you by marriage or civil union, or a friend.
Representing yourself comes with concrete obligations. The Government of Quebec lists what you have to be able to do: understand your case well enough to explain it orally and in writing, understand legal vocabulary, negotiate with the other party or their lawyer, prepare the pleadings, prepare for trial, question witnesses, and comply with the rules and the time limits. The rules of procedure “apply to you as if you were a lawyer”.
The official page also carries a warning: in family matters, you could be ordered to reimburse the other party's legal fees if the court concludes that you are abusing the process. Nothing prevents you, either, from consulting a lawyer on specific points while still representing yourself.
What to document
A complete chronological file, a list of the facts to be proved with the matching exhibit for each, your list of witnesses, and a calendar of the applicable deadlines. It is preparation, not improvisation, that makes up for not having a lawyer.
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
Official sources
- Representing yourself in court (Government of Quebec)
- Code of Civil Procedure, art. 542 (Légis Québec)
Related questions
- Will the judge help me if I do not have a lawyer?
- Can the court clerk give me advice?
- Where can I find free or low-cost legal help in Quebec?
- Do I have to send a formal notice before suing?
- What should I write in a formal notice and how do I send it?
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.