I filed suit against one of the big three and the court date is next week. I've researched similar suits on here and on muliple occasions the CRA has not shown up to court and the plaintiff won the case with a monetary judgment. My question is... If the CRA does not show up, should I plead my case and attempt to obtain a Small Claims judgment? OR If I receive a Small Claims judgment, can I then file in a District or Federal court for the same issues with the goal of injunctive relief with a monetary judgment in Small Claims already granted? My thought is that if I arrive at court on Monday and the CRA is not represented, I will file to dismiss the case without prejudice and then turn around and file in District or Federal court. Unruly
If the CRA does'nt show up you win by default. I have filed on all three CRA and from what I have read here they all play "Chicken" till the very end. It's the same old fan dance, "What do you want to do to settle this?", then you tell them what you want and they either agree or counter you. You're a little gnat they would rather just get rid of. Treat it like a business transaction and they will also. As far as bumping it to Federal District court that is an option, but not a very good one. First off there is the cost involved in refiling and the hassle. Federal Court has pretty strict rules if you are going to do this pro-se. Filings have to be just right, including all the latin. In addition moving to Federal court may postpone things for 12-18 months till you get your FIRST hearing. The only compelling reason I have seen is if the Judge in your Small Claims case is a real moron and the CRA's are digging their heels in and from all indications you are going to lose then pull the plug and move to Federal. It's a good tactic and the other attorney may convince his client into making a settlement offer to prevent the costs of defending the case.
