What Happens If You Don't Respond to a Small Claim in New Brunswick

Ignoring a small claim in New Brunswick does not make it go away. Once the 30-day response deadline passes without a filed Form 2, the claimant gains the right to request a judgment against you. For a debt or fixed-sum claim, the clerk may enter judgment without a hearing; an unliquidated-damages claim proceeds to an assessment hearing.

The Default Judgment Process

After 30 days, the claimant files a Form 6 (Request for Judgment) with the court clerk, along with proof that you were properly served. What happens next depends on the type of claim:

Fixed-amount claims (a specific debt or the return of personal property): The clerk reviews the file and enters a Form 7 Default Judgment against you administratively, without a court hearing.

Unliquidated damages (the amount is disputed or uncertain — repair costs, contract losses, property damage): The clerk enters an interim judgment and schedules an assessment hearing solely to determine how much you owe. You are still shut out of arguing whether you owe anything at all — only the dollar figure is at issue.

What Enforcement Looks Like

A default judgment is not just a piece of paper saying you owe money. The claimant can take it to Sheriff Services and start enforcement under the Enforcement of Money Judgments Act. That can mean:

• A lien registered against your personal property through the Personal Property Registry
• A lien against any real property you own through the Land Registry
• Seizure of assets by the Sheriff (initiation fee of $120, plus $300 per seizure attempt)
• Wage garnishment, subject to statutory living-expense exemptions

The applicable Sheriff fees are set by the EMJA fee schedule.

Do Not Wait for Another Reminder

Once the response deadline passes, do not wait for another reminder. The claimant may request judgment, and for a debt or fixed-sum claim the clerk can enter judgment without a hearing after receiving Form 6 and proof of service.

Filing Late — the Narrow Window

Under Section 9, you can still file a Form 2 Response at any time before judgment is actually entered. If your response reaches the clerk before the claimant's Form 6 does, you are back in the game. But this is a race you may not know you are running. Every day past the deadline is a day the claimant could be filing their request.

If judgment has already been entered, your only path back is a formal application to set aside the default — a process that requires a sworn affidavit (Form 8), a proposed response, and meeting a two-part test showing both a valid reason for missing the deadline and an arguable defence on the merits.

The simplest way to avoid all of this is to file your Form 2 within the 30 days. Our New Brunswick small claims response guide walks through the entire response process with deadline trackers and filing checklists.

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