Bill 96 and Quebec Small Claims Court English Rights — What You Need to Know

The Short Answer for Natural Persons

If you're an individual — not a corporation — you have an absolute constitutional right to file, plead, and conduct your small claims case entirely in English. Bill 96 didn't change that, and it can't. Section 133 of the Constitution Act, 1867 guarantees the right to use English or French in any Quebec court.

You can file Form SJ-870E in English, submit your exhibits in English, testify in English at the hearing, and request an English version of the judgment. The court registry provides English forms and bilingual service. This is not a workaround or a special accommodation — it's a constitutional right that predates Confederation.

What Bill 96 Actually Changed

Bill 96, formally known as An Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec, was adopted in June 2022. It strengthened French-language requirements across many sectors in Quebec, including the court system. The provision that got attention was the requirement for legal entities — corporations, partnerships, and other business entities — to attach a certified French translation to any court pleading filed in English, at their own expense.

This matters for business plaintiffs or corporate defendants in small claims. A small incorporated business filing a pleading in English would theoretically need to attach a certified French translation to that pleading.

The Judicial Stay — Translation Rules Suspended

Before the translation requirement took effect, the Superior Court of Quebec intervened. In Mitchell v. Procureur général du Québec, the court granted a stay suspending the mandatory translation provisions pending a full constitutional challenge. That stay remains in effect.

What this means in practice: corporations and other legal entities can currently file pleadings in English without attaching certified French translations. The legal obligation exists on paper but is not being enforced while the constitutional challenge works through the courts.

This status could change. If the constitutional challenge fails and the stay is lifted, legal entities will need certified French translations attached to English pleadings. But as of October 2026, the stay holds.

Natural Persons Are Unaffected Either Way

Even if the stay were lifted tomorrow, it wouldn't affect you as an individual claimant. Bill 96's translation requirement targets only legal entities. Natural persons retain the same English-language rights they've always had under Section 133 of the Constitution Act.

The distinction is straightforward:

• You (individual): File in English, no translation needed, no conditions
• Your sole proprietorship: You're a natural person — same rule applies
• Your incorporated business (10 employees or fewer): Currently no translation required under the judicial stay; if the stay lifts, translations may be required

Practical Considerations at the Court

Even though you have the right to file in English, the system has friction points for English speakers:

The GNJQ portal (Greffe numérique judiciaire du Québec) is available in English, but some interface elements, error messages, and system prompts default to French. The underlying database fields are French-language. This can be confusing when you're filling out an electronic application and the field labels don't match the English form headings you're looking at.

Court communications — notices, scheduling letters, correspondence from the clerk — may arrive in French. You can request English versions, but the default administrative language of Quebec courts is French.

The hearing itself operates in whichever language the parties speak. If you testify in English and the other party speaks French, the judge handles both. You can request an interpreter through the court clerk's office if needed, though this adds complexity and should be arranged before the hearing date.

Your evidence doesn't need to be translated if you're a natural person. Contracts, emails, and invoices in English are admissible as-is. But if a key document is in a third language (neither English nor French), you'll likely need a translation.

For a complete bilingual walkthrough of the filing process — including field-by-field guidance for the GNJQ portal — see the Quebec Small Claims Filing Guide.

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