Business debt file: documenting before legal action
Organization tool and general legal information. Preuve en main is not a law firm and gives no legal advice. It calculates neither limitation periods nor interest, and it chooses neither the court nor the remedy. Have your file reviewed by a lawyer.
What this file is for
A data or IT consulting firm with dozens of employees whose client is not paying its invoices needs to be able to show what was agreed, what was delivered, what was invoiced and paid, and what was claimed, on what date, and by which exhibit. This file gathers those pieces in one place, assembles the timeline and prints a summary to hand to the firm’s lawyer. You do the entering: the tool puts things in order, it draws no conclusions.
What this tool does, and what it does not do
- It organizes what you enter into ten sections and builds a timeline sorted by date.
- It adds up the amounts you enter: invoiced, paid, credited, balance. Nothing else.
- It computes a SHA-256 fingerprint in your browser when you choose a file. The file is neither uploaded nor kept: only its name, size, type, date and fingerprint are recorded.
- It calculates no limitation period and no interest. It chooses neither the court, nor the remedy, nor the form, and it does not say whether your business may sue in Small Claims.
- It sends nothing and chases no one. No account, no server: the file is saved in this browser, on this device, until you erase it. On a shared device, someone else could reopen it: export the file, then use “Erase everything”.
Nothing is saved in this browser yet.
1Creditor business profile
The business that is owed the money. These fields are saved as you type.
For information, the Small Claims rule set by the Code of Civil Procedure. The first paragraph of article 536 begins: “An application for recovery of a claim not exceeding $15,000, excluding interest […]”. The second paragraph adds:
“A legal person, a partnership or an association or another group not endowed with juridical personality cannot act as plaintiff under the rules of this Title unless a maximum of 10 persons bound to it by an employment contract were under its direction or control at any time during the 12-month period preceding the application.”
Code of Civil Procedure (CQLR, c. C-25.01), art. 536, English version · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026, consolidated to 12 August 2026.
Check with a lawyer. How this text applies to your business, and over exactly which period to count, is a legal question: the tool does not declare your business eligible or not.
Representing the business before the courts: what the texts say
Outside Small Claims, article 87 of the Code of Civil Procedure lists who must be represented by a lawyer:
“The following are required to be represented before the courts by a lawyer in contentious proceedings, and by a lawyer or a notary in non-contentious proceedings: […] (3) legal persons; (4) general or limited partnerships and associations and other groups not endowed with juridical personality, unless all the partners or members act themselves or mandate one of their number to act;”
C.C.P., art. 87 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
In Small Claims, article 542 sets its own rule:
“The State, legal persons, partnerships and associations and other groups not endowed with juridical personality can only be represented by an officer or employee in their sole service who is not a lawyer.”
“Both natural persons and legal persons may consult a lawyer, including for the purpose of preparing the presentation of their case.”
C.C.P., art. 542, paras. 2 and 4 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
Jurisdiction by amount is set by article 35:
“The Court of Québec has exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine applications in which the value of the subject matter of the dispute or the amount claimed, including in lease resiliation matters, is less than $75,000 and concurrent jurisdiction with the Superior Court, at the plaintiff’s option, where that value or amount is equal to or exceeds $75,000 but is less than $100,000, exclusive of interest; […]”
C.C.P., art. 35, para. 1 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026. The same article sets out exceptions and, in its fourth paragraph, an increase of the limit announced by notice in the Gazette officielle du Québec: the limit in force and the choice of court are for your lawyer.
That is why this file is designed to be handed to the business’s lawyer: it gathers the facts and the exhibits, and the lawyer draws the conclusions.
2The debtor
The client who owes the money, identified by its legal name, not only its trade name. The tool queries no register: open the official enterprise register search (Québec.ca), run the search yourself and note the date. Québec.ca’s Small Claims page on identifying the defendant warns that a misidentified defendant could lead to the application being rejected. Identifying the defendant, Québec.ca · last updated 24 August 2026, read 14 October 2026.
3Agreement and mandates
The master services agreement, every statement of work, purchase order, accepted proposal and change order. For each one: its date, who signed or accepted it, its reference and where the original is kept.
No agreement yet.
Proving a contract: what the texts say
“A person seeking to assert a right shall prove the facts on which his claim is based.”
Civil Code of Québec, art. 2803, para. 1 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“A juridical act set forth in a writing or the content of a writing shall be proved by the production of the original or a copy which legally stands in lieu of it.”
“However, where a party acting in good faith and with diligence is unable to produce the original of a writing or a copy which legally stands in lieu of it, proof may be made by any means.”
C.C.Q., art. 2860, paras. 1 and 2 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“Proof of a juridical act may not be made, between the parties, by testimony where the value in dispute exceeds $1,500.”
“However, in the absence of proof in writing and regardless of the value in dispute, proof may be made by testimony of any juridical act where there is a commencement of proof; proof may also be made by testimony, against a person, of a juridical act executed by him in the ordinary course of business of an enterprise.”
C.C.Q., art. 2862 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“An unsigned writing regularly used in the ordinary course of business of an enterprise to evidence a juridical act makes proof of its content.”
C.C.Q., art. 2831 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
What these texts mean for your documents is for your lawyer; the tool only helps you know what you have and where it is.
4Work performed and deliverables
What shows the work was done and received: deliverables, acceptance or sign-off emails, time-tracking exports, meeting minutes, tickets, delivery logs. Note the system each record comes from and who can testify to it.
No work recorded yet.
A business’s own documents: what article 2870 says
Article 2870 C.C.Q. deals with the statement of a person who does not appear as a witness, admitted with the court’s authorization; its third paragraph adds:
“Reliability is presumed to be sufficiently guaranteed with respect in particular to documents drawn up in the ordinary course of business of an enterprise, to documents entered in a register required by law to be kept, and spontaneous statements that are contemporaneous to the occurrence of the facts.”
C.C.Q., art. 2870 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
5Invoices and payments
Every invoice, every payment received, every credit note, with the amounts and taxes as they appear on your documents. The balance is a plain sum of your entries.
No invoice yet.
Interest: why the tool calculates none
“Damages which result from delay in the performance of an obligation to pay a sum of money consist of interest at the agreed rate or, in the absence of any agreement, at the legal rate.”
“The creditor is entitled to the damages from the date of default without having to prove that he has suffered any injury.”
C.C.Q., art. 1617, paras. 1 and 2 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026. See also article 1619 (additional indemnity).
The applicable rate and the starting point (“the date of default”) depend on your contract and the facts: that calculation is for your lawyer. Simply note your contract’s interest clause, if there is one, in section 3.
6Acknowledgements, reminders and formal notice
Every reminder, every reply from the debtor, any partial payment, any acknowledgement of the debt or promise to pay, and the formal notice with how it was sent and its proof of receipt.
“Acknowledgement of a right, as well as renunciation of the benefit of the time elapsed, interrupts prescription.”
C.C.Q., art. 2898 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
That is why an acknowledgement, a partial payment or a promise to pay is marked raise with the lawyer. Whether a given exchange is an acknowledgement, and what it changes, is a legal question: the tool calculates no limitation period.
No exchange yet.
Formal notice: what the texts say
“A debtor may also be put in default by an extrajudicial demand to perform the obligation addressed to him by his creditor, a judicial application filed against him or the sole operation of law.”
C.C.Q., art. 1594, para. 2 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“An extrajudicial demand by which a creditor puts his debtor in default must be made in writing.”
“The demand must allow the debtor sufficient time for performance, having regard to the nature of the obligation and the circumstances; otherwise the debtor may perform the obligation within a reasonable time after the demand.”
C.C.Q., art. 1595 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
Québec.ca’s Formal notice page (last updated 20 October 2025, read 14 October 2026) says you may have to prove to the court that the recipient received the notice, and recommends keeping the proof of receipt (Canada Post’s for registered mail, or the bailiff’s minutes) and a copy of the letter. That is what the “Proof of sending or receipt” field is for.
Prescription (limitation period): what the texts say, and why the tool calculates nothing
“An action to enforce a personal right or movable real right is prescribed by three years, if the prescriptive period is not otherwise determined.”
C.C.Q., art. 2925 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“The day on which the right of action arises determines the beginning of the period of extinctive prescription.”
C.C.Q., art. 2880, para. 2 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“The filing of a judicial application before the expiry of the prescriptive period constitutes a civil interruption, provided the demand is served on the person to be prevented from prescribing not later than 60 days following the expiry of the prescriptive period.”
C.C.Q., art. 2892, para. 1 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
Pinpointing the day the right of action arose, in a specific file, is a legal question. If a date worries you, call your lawyer without waiting until this file is finished.
7Exhibits
The exhibit register, numbered P-1, P-2… in list order. These are working numbers: the numbering filed with the court will be set with your lawyer. For each exhibit: its date, its source, where the original is and who keeps it.
SHA-256 fingerprint. It helps check that a copy is identical, byte for byte, to the file examined; it does not prove that the content is true, that it was lawfully obtained, the chain of custody, or admissibility.
No exhibit yet.
If you reorder the exhibits, the numbers change: check the “Linked exhibit” references in the other sections.
Large file? Above 1 GB, compute the fingerprint with a system tool (shasum -a 256 on macOS,
sha256sum on Linux, certutil -hashfile … SHA256 on Windows) and paste it.
Technology-based documents and integrity: what the texts say
“The integrity of a document is ensured if it is possible to verify that the information it contains has not been altered and has been maintained in its entirety, and that the medium used provides stability and the required perennity to the information.”
C.C.Q., art. 2839, para. 1 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“It is not necessary to prove that the medium of a document or that the processes, systems or technology used to communicate by means of a document ensure its integrity, unless the person contesting the admission of the document establishes, upon a preponderance of evidence, that the integrity of the document has been affected.”
C.C.Q., art. 2840 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026. See also section 7 of the Act to establish a legal framework for information technology.
“In the case of technology-based documents, the functions of the original are fulfilled by a document meeting the requirements of section 12 of the Act to establish a legal framework for information technology (chapter C-1.1) and the functions of the copy standing in lieu of the original are fulfilled by a certified copy of the document meeting the requirements of section 16 of that Act.”
C.C.Q., art. 2860, para. 3 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
A fingerprint recorded here does not turn a copy into an original or a “certified copy” within the meaning of these texts: it only helps compare copies.
8Preserving the information
In a firm of dozens of people, the evidence is scattered: mailboxes, chat channels, project tools, time tracking, accounting. Automatic deletion and staff departures can make it disappear. Tick what has been done; the list prints with the file.
Export and copy log
Who exported what, when, in which format and with which tool. These entries match what the information technology Act asks to document when a document is transferred (box below).
No export recorded yet.
Integrity and transfer of documents: what the information technology Act says
“The integrity of a document must be maintained throughout its life cycle, from creation, in the course of transfer, consultation and transmission, during retention and until archiving or destruction.”
Act to establish a legal framework for information technology (CQLR, c. C-1.1), s. 6, para. 2 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
“However, subject to section 20, in order for the source document to be destroyed and replaced by the document resulting from the transfer without compromising legal value, the transfer must be documented so that it may be shown, if need be, that the resulting document contains the same information as the source document and that its integrity is ensured.”
“Transfer documentation must include a reference to the original format of the source document, the transfer process used and the guarantees it purports to offer, according to the specifications provided with the product, as regards the integrity of the source document, if it is not destroyed, and the integrity of the resulting document.”
Same Act, s. 17, paras. 2 and 3 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026. Section 18 deals with the admissibility of a document so transferred when the source is destroyed.
Do not destroy any original without speaking to your lawyer: the log above documents your exports, it does not replace that decision.
Personal information (Law 25)
Your emails, timesheets and minutes often contain personal information about your client’s staff and your own. Share them only as needed, first of all with the business’s lawyer. Section 18 of the private-sector Act provides, among other things:
“A person carrying on an enterprise may, without the consent of the person concerned, communicate personal information he holds on that person (1) to his attorney; […] (9.1) to a person if the information is needed for the recovery of a claim of the enterprise;”
“A person carrying on an enterprise must make an entry of every communication made under subparagraphs 6 to 9.1 of the first paragraph.”
Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector (CQLR, c. P-39.1), s. 18, paras. 1 and 2, last amended by 2021, c. 25 · LégisQuébec · read 14 October 2026.
What this text allows in your situation is for your lawyer or for the person in charge of the protection of personal information at your business.
9Timeline
Assembled automatically from every dated entry in the sections above, oldest first. Read-only: to correct a line, edit the entry in its own section.
10File to hand to the lawyer
The summary below brings together the parties, the amounts entered, the timeline, the exhibit list, the state of preservation and your questions. Print it or save it as a PDF. The JSON file keeps the whole file so you can reopen it later or on another device: it contains your entries, so treat it as a confidential document.
Preview · this is the part that prints
Official sources
Statutes read on 14 October 2026 on LégisQuébec, in their English version consolidated to 12 August 2026.
- Code of Civil Procedure (CQLR, c. C-25.01), arts. 35, 87, 536 and 542.
- Civil Code of Québec, arts. 1594, 1595, 1617, 1619, 2803, 2831, 2839, 2840, 2860, 2862, 2870, 2880, 2892, 2898 and 2925.
- Act to establish a legal framework for information technology (CQLR, c. C-1.1), ss. 6, 7, 17 and 18.
- Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector (CQLR, c. P-39.1), s. 18.
- Act respecting the Barreau du Québec (CQLR, c. B-1), s. 128: giving legal advice and consultations on legal matters for others is reserved to the practising advocate or solicitor (subject to ss. 128.1 and 129).
- Formal notice (Québec.ca), last updated 20 October 2025, read 14 October 2026.
- Identifying the defendant (Québec.ca), last updated 24 August 2026, read 14 October 2026.
- Find an enterprise in the enterprise register (Québec.ca), last updated 23 September 2025, read 14 October 2026.
Further reading
- Can my business sue in small claims court?
- How do I find a business’s real legal name to sue it?
- Do I have to send a formal notice before suing?
- Does filing my claim stop the limitation period?
- Can I claim interest on top of the amount?
- All the business questions
The other free tools
- Registre des créances impayées (in French) · one line per invoice, to follow several clients.
- My exhibit list · number and label exhibits.
- My chronology of facts · one fact per line, with its proof.
- My communications inventory · what you still have, and in what form.
- My meeting with a lawyer · the page to set on the table.
What next? This file lives in this browser. A Preuve en main case adds the dated journal, numbered exhibits and a timeline that carry over from one session to the next.
Open a business case free to start · see the plans
Organization tool and general legal information. Preuve en main is not a law firm and gives no legal advice. It calculates neither limitation periods nor interest, and it chooses neither the court nor the remedy. Have your file reviewed by a lawyer.