[ Read Paralegal Services ]

Read Paralegal Services,formerly Ottawa-Carleton Law Clerks (a division of Read Abstracts Ltd.). Provides Ottawa and the surrounding area with Small Claims and Landlord and Tenant representation.

We handle hundreds of cases every year, with excellent results.

Our client list includes law firms, individual lawyers, landlords, tenants, small businesses, banks and individuals.Please browse our web page to find out all the services that our company provides and call us with any questions you may have or to set up a meeting.

ABOUT READ PARALEGAL SERVICES

Read Paralegal Services, formerly Ottawa-Carleton Law Clerks (a division of Read Abstracts Ltd.) is a paralegal firm that specializes in Small Claims and Landlord and Tenant matters. Our firm represents Plaintiffs, Defendants, Landlords and Tenants.

We have been providing legal services to Eastern Ontario since 1969.,/p>

Other services provided by our firm are court filing of documents for any type of court (Small Claims, Civil, Family, Criminal, Federal and the Supreme Court of Canada), court appearances for remands, adjournments, motions, judgment debtor exams, and process serving.

Our team of diversely experienced professionals, dedicated to customer service and satisfaction, has the experience and ingenuity required to provide quick, confidential legal services. The firm is a registered member of The Paralegal Society of Ontario and The Professional Paralegal Association.

Our office is always staffed to receive your calls and to accept documents via courier and/or regular mail. Our head office is located just one block from the Ottawa Courthouse and three blocks from the Tenant Tribunal, giving us quick access to quickly file documents or attend to any other court related work.

RPS PROCESS SERVING

Process serving is a very effective method of serving documents such as Claims, eviction notices and judgment debtor exams on the opposing side.

This method also avoids confrontation between the parties
If successful in your claim you can claim the cost of the process server into your costs.
Often when you are having difficulty finding a person or if the person is evading your service, you are better off hiring a professional process server, or asking for a skip trace.
In most situations you want the method of service to be personal and as the best time to serve people is early in the morning or in the evening, it is more convenient to use a process server.
It is always a good idea to give a description of the person to the process server. Also if you give a description of the car they drive to help find where the person is.
If the person you are suing is in another city, province or even country our process servers know who to contact in that area.
Most lawyers and paralegals have a process server they use on a regular basis or even on staff.

Read Paralegal Services Manager of Process serving is Mark Simpson and he can be reached at either 613-236-0664 or 613-277-5155.

RPS SMALL CLAIMS

Read Paralegal Services provides the following services with regards to Small Claims Court:

Meet with client to review documents, hear the history of events and suggest how to proceed.
Prepare the Claim, Defence or Defendants Claim along with all necessary exhibits.
File the Claim or Defence at the Court House.
Serve the Claim, prepare the affidavit of service and file the affidavit with the Courts.
Negotiate out of Court settlements.
Prepare and attend the pre-trial, aide in settlement talks.
Prepare and attend trials, including finding case law and any other pertinent information.
Prepare and file Default Judgments
Collect after judgment is ordered through various methods.
Attend motions, adjournments, assessments, and judgment debtor exams.

RPS SMALL CLAIMS

Small Claims Court is “The Peoples Court”. It is not necessary to have a lawyer to proceed with an action in this Court. You can proceed on your own, however if you are uneasy about speaking in front of a judge, paralegals are a more affordable and a very capable option.

The monetary jurisdiction of this court has been raised from $6000.00 to $10,000.00 effective April 2, 2001, pursuant to O. Reg. 626/00 made under the Courts Of Justice Act November 22, 2000 and filed December 7, 2000.

Read Paralegal Services has handled hundreds of Small Claims cases. We take pride in our ability to assess each individual case and direct it in the best direction for the client. We take care of every aspect of your file for you, from meeting with you to go over all of your documents and hear your story, to preparing , filing and serving your Claim. We also prepare Defences as well as attending the pre-trial, trying to settle out of Court and going to trial.

Collection of orders and default judgments , motions, and adjournments are other areas that Ottawa-Carleton Law Clerks has experience in. Keep in mind when handling a Small Claims matter there are Rules regarding procedure and time lines , it is best that you seek some form of help to ensure everything is being done in the proper manner.

RPS SMALL CLAIMS

You may run into other obstacles along the way, it is not always as simple as it may sound above, we therefore encourage the public to seek help with their claims even if it is just a simple meeting. Contact us by phone 613-236-0664, fax 613-236-3677 or email for free consultaion.

Court Filing
Provincial Court

Litigation Search	$ 25.00
Manual Bulk Sales Searches	$ 25.00
General Division Filing	$ 15.00
Family Division Filing	$ 15.00
Small Claims Filing	$ 15.00
Estate Division Filing	$ 15.00
Sheriffs Office (Obtain Certificate)	$ 10.00

Federal Court

Trial Division Filing	$ 25.00
Immigration Filing	$ 25.00

Supreme Court of Canada

Registry Office Filings	$ 25.00

NOTE: Special pricing plan is available for client’s wishing to set up regular court filing services.

LANDLORD & TENANT

Read Paralegal Services provides the following services with regards to Landlord and Tenant matters:

Meet with clients to review documents, hear the history of events and suggest how to proceed.
Prepare the necessary forms for the clients situation such as:
- Rent abatements
- Evictions for non-payment of rent
- Persistently late rent payment
- Changing the locks
- Landlord/Purchasers own use
- Damages
- Tenant’s rights
- Notice of Hearing
Serve the forms and file Certificate of Service with the Tribunal
Schedule a hearing date
Serve Hearing date notice on the other side
Negotiate out of court settlements
Prepare for the Hearing
Mediate at the Hearing
Attend Hearing on clients behalf
Order the Sheriff if necessary
Collect outstanding debts

LANDLORD & TENANT INFORMATION

Residential Landlord and Tenant matters are governed by the Tenant Protection Act (effective June 17, 1998) and it's regulations. All matters are heard before the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal.

Tenants and Landlords should know that this Act changed the laws of residential tenancies and now that many clauses can no longer be enforced, such as the “no pets” clause in leases are now void.

If a Landlord is planning to evict a Tenant they must use the forms prescribed by the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal, otherwise it is not legally binding, even if worded “take this as your legal notice to vacate”.

The Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal can be called upon by tenants for matters such as maintenance issues, safety issues, tenant rights, rent abatements or if your Landlord is interfering with your reasonable enjoyment of the unit.

Landlords typically go to the Tribunal for evictions for non-payment of rent and collection of rent arrears.

Tenants should also know that your Landlord can raise the rent once in every 12 month period but only by the guideline amount. (Example the 2001 amount is 2.9%) If your rent is being raised to maximum rent because you have been living in the unit before 1998 please contact us for more information.

LANDLORD & TENANT INFORMATION CONTINUED

Just like Small Claims Court the monetary jurisdiction of the Tribunal is $10,000.00. Again for Landlord and Tenant matters paralegals are an affordable and capable alternative of representation.

We specialize in preparation and filing of all necessary TPA forms, serving documents, mediation and representing you at hearings to present your case. We also arrange for sheriffs evictions.

We also suggest that you contact us or the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal if you do have any questions about your current living situation or if you are a Landlord, questions about any tenant problems.

To contact the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal call 1-888-332-3234 and for legal help and free consultation in Ottawa and surrounding areas call us at 613-236-0664.

RPS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Here are some of the most commonly asked Small Claims and Landlord and Tenant questions we are asked.

Q.	My year lease that I signed is ending next month what do I do?
A.	Nothing, you now become a month to month tenant and are in what is known as a “month to month lease”.
Q.	I am on a month to month lease, how much notice do I have to give to the landlord that I am leaving?
A.	You must give 60 days WRITTEN notice to the Landlord.
Q.	The Landlord wants post dated cheques do I have to give them to him?
A.	No, it states in the Tenant Protection Act that you do not have to give postdated cheques to your Landlord.
Q.	My landlord says there are no pets allowed but I have a pet what can I do?
A.	You are allowed to have pets. Even though the Landlord owns the unit the “no pets” clause has been void since 1998. There is a restriction as to how many animals you can have per unit so check with your local By-law authorities.
Q.	What is the difference between subletting an apartment and assigning an apartment.
A.	If you sublet your apartment then you are still responsible to see that the rent gets paid and no damage is done by the new tenant, but if you assign the new tenant is responsible for everything.

RPS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - Continued
Q.	What form do I need to evict a tenant for non-payment of rent?
A.	Form N4
Q.	How much notice does a Landlord have to give that he or a family member will be moving into the rental unit?
A.	60 days before the end of the lease or 60 days before the end of a month if you are a month to month tenant.
Q.	How much does it cost to file a Claim in Small Claims Court?
A.	$50.00 but if you sue more then 10 people in a year it goes up to $140.00 per claim.
Q.	After I serve my Claim on the Defendant what happens next?
A.	You must file your affidavit of service with the Courts. Then you wait for 20 days from the date of service to receive a copy of their defence.
Q.	What if no Defence is filed.
A.	Then you file for default judgement.

RPS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - Continued
Q.	The Defence to my claim has been filed, what happens next?
A.	You get listed for a pre-trial. A pre-trial is where all the parties go into a room with a Deputy Judge to see if a settlement can be reached.
Q.	The person I have sued has served me with a Defendants Claim what do I do?
A.	A Defendants Claim is the same as a Plaintiffs Claim but only done by the Defendant on the same matter. Now you have 20 days to file a defence against what they are claiming.
Q.	I have Judgment against the Defendant how can I collect?
A.	There are many different methods. Judgment Debtor Exam is common, this is where they must appear at the court house and answer questions about their assets, bank accounts, investments etc. If you already know this information you can garnish wages, seize bank accounts or put a lien on real estate property. It usually takes some time for this. It is also possible to garnish certain types of RRSP’s.

RPS Other Search Services

Read Paralegal Services provides services other than Small Claims and Landlord and Tenant representation.

We provide legal research to lawyers and individuals. We have full access to the Ottawa Provincial Courthouse Library, Quick Law and the Internet. Our staff of researchers have taken legal assistant courses for all of the above.

Uncontested divorces is another area that Read Paralegal Services can help with preparation of the necessary documentation and filing.

We file all documents with any of the three Courts in Ottawa ( Provincial, Federal and Supreme). There is a daily filing done at 3:00 at the Provincial court found at 161 Elgin St. Ottawa.

We also conduct Bulk Sales and Litigation Searches to locate court cases against individuals or companies.

Ontario Licence Plate Searches, Vehicle Identification Searches and Vehicle History Searches. Skip Tracing / Locates, Ontario birth certificates, marriage certificates and death certificates.