How Do I Sue Someone for Breach of Contract in Ontario or Alberta?

Steps to sue for breach of contract in Ontario or Alberta

Suing for breach of contract follows the same basic sequence in both provinces, but the dollar thresholds, forms, and courts differ. There is no general federal breach-of-contract law to sue under: contract disputes fall under provincial jurisdiction because “Property and Civil Rights in the Province” is assigned to the provinces, not Parliament, under section 92(13) of the Constitution Act, 1867. The Federal Court only gets involved where the federal Crown itself is a party to the contract, under section 17 of the Federal Courts Act, which is not the situation for an ordinary dispute between two private parties or businesses.

1. Check the limitation period first. In Ontario, the basic limitation period for a contract claim is 2 years, with an ultimate limit of 15 years, under the Limitations Act, 2002. In Alberta, the same 2-year period applies from when you knew or ought to have known of the breach, subject to a 10-year ultimate limit, whichever comes first, under the Alberta Limitations Act. Even a claim against the federal Crown for breach of contract borrows the ordinary provincial limitation period rather than a separate federal rule, under the Crown Liability and Proceedings Act.

2. Work out what you’re owed and which court has jurisdiction. The right court depends on the dollar amount of your claim.

Ontario’s Small Claims Court monetary jurisdiction rose to $50,000 from $35,000 as of October 1, 2025, and anything above that must go to the Superior Court of Justice. Alberta’s Court of Justice Civil Claims division has jurisdiction over claims, including breach-of-contract claims, up to $100,000 under the Civil Division Regulation.

3. Decide whether to waive part of your claim to stay in a lower-cost court. If you’re owed more than Ontario’s $50,000 limit, you can still choose Small Claims Court by voluntarily waiving the excess, per Ontario.ca. This can be worth it if the lower court’s simpler process and lower cost outweigh the amount given up.

4. Prepare and issue the correct commencing document. In Ontario, a lawsuit formally begins when the court stamps, dates, and assigns a file number to your Statement of Claim or Notice of Action, under the Rules of Civil Procedure. In Alberta, a Statement of Claim is generally the document used to start an action above the Civil Claims limit, under rule 3.26(2) of the Alberta Rules of Court.

5. Serve the defendant with the issued document so the clock starts on their response.

6. Move through the court process. For contract claims between $50,000 and $200,000 in Ontario, the Superior Court’s simplified procedure streamlines steps like discovery and trial preparation, under rule 76.01. Most cases in both provinces resolve before a full trial once both sides have exchanged evidence and assessed their positions.

7. Understand what you can actually recover. The standard remedy is compensatory (also called expectation) damages, calculated on the assumption the defendant would have performed the contract in whatever way was most advantageous to itself, as the Supreme Court of Canada set out in Hamilton v Open Window Bakery Ltd. This is a Canada-wide common law principle, not one that differs between Ontario and Alberta.

A worked example

An Ontario business is owed $12,000 on an unpaid invoice for services delivered under a signed contract. The breach happened 14 months ago, well within Ontario’s 2-year limitation period, so the claim is not time-barred. Because $12,000 is under Ontario’s $50,000 Small Claims Court limit, the business issues a claim in Small Claims Court rather than the Superior Court of Justice. Once the court stamps and issues the claim, it is served on the other party, who then has an opportunity to respond before the matter proceeds toward settlement or a hearing.

Common mistakes

• Missing the limitation period. Waiting past 2 years in either Ontario or Alberta generally bars the claim outright, regardless of how strong the underlying breach is.
• Filing in the wrong court for the amount claimed. An Ontario claim over $50,000 filed in Small Claims Court, or an Alberta claim over $100,000 filed in Civil Claims, is in the wrong forum unless the excess is properly waived.
• Not knowing the Ontario waiver option exists. Some claimants over $50,000 assume they must go to the Superior Court of Justice, missing the option to waive the excess and stay in the cheaper, faster Small Claims Court (Ontario only).
• Assuming the Federal Court is an option. The Federal Court’s contract jurisdiction is essentially limited to cases involving the federal Crown; an ordinary dispute between two businesses or individuals has no route into Federal Court.
• Expecting punitive-style damages. Contract damages are compensatory, aimed at putting the wronged party in the position they’d have been in had the contract been performed, not a penalty against the breaching party.