Reference no: EM131134118

You are a licensed paralegal, contacted by your new client Frederica Gomez on February 3rd, 2014. She carries on business as Gomez Tables & Chairs at 132 Cherry Lane in the City of Oshawa, Ontario (the business postal code is L1H 1B9 and the telephone number is (905)-488-2900 with a fax number of (905)-488-2432). Your client told you that she sold Walter Smithy 100 dining room chairs at a cost of $125.00 each plus HST on November 15, 2013 with terms of payment in 30 days. An interest charge of 6% was indicated on the invoice commencing the day following the payment due date of December 15th, 2013.

These chairs were delivered to Smithy's place of business in Toronto on November 16th. Frederica tells you that despite many phone calls, Mr. Walter Smithy, who operates a business called "Chairs R Us" at 380 Canarctic Drive in Toronto, Ontario (postal code M3J 2R9, telephone number (416)- 722-1526) has refused to pay the invoice. At the time the order was placed he gave a post dated cheque dated December 15, 2013 for $1,000.00 which was returned by the bank marked "insufficient funds" at a charge to your client from their bank of $25.00.

Your client advises you that Walter's wife Amelda Smithy works with Walter Smithy, but you are not sure of the nature of the legal entity operated as Chairs R Us. You suspect they may be partners, but your client is not sure. After doing an online search, you cannot find a name of a registered corporation and in fact, even an online search under the Business Names Act does not reveal a company name registered as Chairs R Us. You suspect it is a partnership, but you have no way of knowing as it appears they have not registered the business name as required.

You are instructed by the client to issue a claim in the proper court. The assignment is as follows:

1) Immediately after you are retained, draft a Demand Letter to be sent to the debtor(s).

2) Draft the original invoice for the claim to be attached to the Demand Letter & Plaintiff's Claim using the facts as above.

3) Draft the Plaintiff's Claim in the proper Court jurisdiction. Do not use the space in the box on the 7A form to do your pleadings, create a separate Appendix A to be attached to the form. Make sure you include yourself as the agent for your client with your contact information in the appropriate part of the claim. Instead of a FAX number you should use your student number at Humber.

4) Assuming for the purposes of this question that the invoice did not mention interest, indicate the pre-judgment interest rate given in the table under section 127 of the Courts of Justice Act and noting section 128(1) of the Courts of Justice Act, both of which are found in the Attorney General's website. Assuming that the Plaintiff's Claim will be filed and issued on February 15th, 2014, calculate the amount of pre-judgment interest owed to the date the claim is issued. Put your answers on a separate page from the claim.

5) Remember to attach to your claim all the relevant documents as required by the Rules. Include at least one additional document in addition to the invoice that might be included and relevant to this type of claim based on the facts above.

6) Draft and submit two different affidavits of service for Walter only. Each of the two affidavits should be by a different method of service under Rule 8 that could apply in this fact situation. For each method picked show the corresponding Rule number, again using the separate page from the claim.

7) Draft the appropriate Small Claims Court document(s) that you will provide to the Court and that you will serve on Mr. and Ms. Smithy in an effort to advise them that you consider them to be partners in Chairs R Us.

8) The matter did not settle at the settlement conference in May, but went to trial in August. Assuming you are awarded a judgment dated August 9th, 2014 and that the statutory CJA interest rate stayed the same for all of 2014, what would be the post judgment interest rate under section 127 of the Courts of Justice Act? Put your answers on a separate page from the claim.

9) Assuming you are awarded a judgment for the full amount of the claim in a judgment dated August 9th, 2014, what would be the total amount of pre-judgment interest awarded to you based on the interest rate printed on the sales invoice? Put your answers on the separate page as above.

10) What is the address of the Courthouse where you will file this? How many copies of the claim will you bring to the Court? Put your answers on the separate page as above.

11) What will be the cost for the plaintiff to issue this claim? You should refer to the Schedule 1 of the Administration of Justice Act found on Canlii or Elaws. Put your answers on the separate page as above.