10 common legal questions Canadians ask (and the law behind them)

In short: Most everyday legal questions in Canada, like whether you can record a call, how much notice you get if fired without cause, or what happens if you die without a will, do not have one national answer: Canada has a single Criminal Code, but employment, tenancy, wills, and limitation periods are set province by province, so answers vary. This post gives plain-language answers to ten of these questions and points to the statute or principle each one rests on. CourtStairs answers questions like these with citations to the primary Canadian sources so you can read the law yourself.

Canadians ask a lot of the same common legal questions, about being fired, recording a call, renting, or what happens to their things when they die. The honest short answer to most of them is: it depends on your province. Canada has one Criminal Code that applies everywhere, but most day-to-day law (employment, tenancy, wills, consumer contracts, deadlines to sue) is provincial, and the rules genuinely differ.

Below are ten of the most common questions, with a short, plain-language explanation and a pointer to the kind of source the answer comes from. These are general explanations of the law, not legal advice, and they are current as of July 2026, so keep in mind that figures and limits change.

Here is the same idea at a glance: one question, one national answer where the Criminal Code governs, but a different answer in every province where private law governs.

1. Can I record a call I'm part of?

Usually yes. The Criminal Code makes it an offence to intercept a private communication, but it carves out an exception where one party to the conversation consents, and if you are on the call, you are that party. This is why Canada is described as a "one-party consent" country. Recording a conversation you are not part of, or planting a device to capture other people's private talk, is a different and much riskier matter. Note that being allowed to record something does not automatically mean you are allowed to publish or share it.

2. How much notice do I get if I'm fired without cause?

When an employer ends a job without a serious reason ("without cause"), you are generally owed either notice or pay in lieu of it. There are two layers. First, a statutory minimum set by your province's employment standards law (for example, Ontario's Employment Standards Act), a floor that rises with your length of service. Second, in the common-law provinces, a court can award "reasonable notice" on top of that, weighed using the long-established Bardal factors: your age, length of service, the character of the job, and how easily you could find similar work. Quebec works differently: art. 2091 of the Civil Code of Québec requires "reasonable notice" of termination for an indeterminate-term contract. A firing for genuine serious misconduct can change everything.

3. Can my landlord enter my home without notice?

As a rule, no. Across Canada, a residential landlord who owns the building still cannot walk into a rented home whenever they like, because the tenant has a right to peaceful enjoyment. Most provinces require advance notice, commonly 24 hours, before the landlord enters to inspect or make repairs. In Quebec, the Civil Code requires the landlord to give around 24 hours' notice before entering, and in Ontario the Residential Tenancies Act requires 24 hours' written notice stating the reason and a reasonable time of entry. Genuine emergencies (a burst pipe, a fire) are the main exception where notice is not required.

4. What's the most I can sue for in small claims court?

Small claims court handles lower-value disputes with simpler procedures, but the dollar ceiling is set province by province and it changes over time. As of July 2026, Quebec's Small Claims Division hears claims up to $15,000, while Ontario's Small Claims Court goes up to $50,000 (raised from $35,000 on October 1, 2025). Other provinces sit at different figures. If your claim is worth more than the limit, you generally either sue in a higher court or agree to give up the excess to stay in small claims. Always check the current limit for your province before filing.

For a fuller breakdown, see our post on small claims court limits across Canada.

5. Do I need a lawyer for small claims court?

No. Small claims courts are designed for people to represent themselves, with plainer rules and lower filing costs. In fact, Quebec goes further: in its Small Claims Division, lawyers generally cannot represent the parties at the hearing at all, so you present your own case. In the common-law provinces you are allowed to bring a lawyer or (in some) a paralegal, but you are not required to. For a modest, straightforward claim, many people handle it themselves.

6. What happens if I die without a will?

If you die without a valid will, you die "intestate," and your province's rules decide who inherits, not you. These rules typically favour your legal spouse and your children in fixed shares, and if no relatives can be found, the estate can eventually go to the government. In Quebec, where there is a surviving married or civil-union spouse and children, the Civil Code splits the estate between them (the spouse taking one-third and the descendants two-thirds). One critical Quebec point: a de facto (common-law) spouse inherits nothing under these intestacy rules, so only a will can provide for them.

7. How long do I have to sue someone?

This is a limitation (or, in Quebec, prescription) period, and missing it can permanently kill an otherwise valid claim. The clock length varies by province. Quebec sets a general prescription period of three years for most personal and movable-property claims under art. 2925 of the Civil Code of Québec. Ontario's basic limitation period is two years from when you knew or reasonably should have known about the claim (Limitations Act, 2002). Different claim types and provinces have different rules, so if a deadline might be near, treat it as urgent.

Practically, a limitation clock runs like this:

1. Something goes wrongA contract is breached, an injury happens, a debt goes unpaid.
2. You discover itIn most common-law provinces the clock starts when you knew or should have known you had a claim (discoverability).
3. The clock runsTwo years in Ontario; three years for most claims in Quebec; other periods elsewhere.
4. The deadline passesAfter it expires, a court will usually refuse to hear the claim, no matter how strong it was.

8. What's the difference between a civil and a criminal case?

They are two separate systems with different purposes. A criminal case is brought by the state (the Crown) to punish conduct society has banned; the standard of proof is high ("beyond a reasonable doubt"), and the outcomes are things like fines, a criminal record, or jail. A civil case is a private dispute between people or companies (an unpaid debt, a broken contract, an injury) where the person suing must prove their case only on the "balance of probabilities" (more likely than not), and the usual remedy is money or a court order, not punishment. The same incident can sometimes lead to both.

9. Do common-law partners have the same rights as a married couple?

Here the answer changes dramatically depending on where you live, so be careful. Quebec does not give de facto spouses the automatic property-division or spousal-support rights that married and civil-union spouses have, a position Canada's highest court has upheld. Elsewhere, treatment varies: some provinces grant cohabiting partners spousal-support rights after living together for a set time, and a few go further and extend property-sharing rules to them, while others do not divide property between unmarried partners the way they do for spouses. Living together does not automatically create "marriage-like" rights everywhere in Canada. For more, see common-law partner rights across Canada.

10. Is there a cooling-off period to cancel a contract?

There is no general right to change your mind and cancel a purchase in Canada. Once you agree, you are usually bound. Cooling-off and cancellation rights exist only for specific kinds of contracts defined by provincial consumer-protection law, such as door-to-door (itinerant) sales, certain long-term memberships, or contracts signed away from the merchant's place of business. Quebec's Consumer Protection Act, for example, gives consumers a right to cancel some of these contracts within a set window. Before assuming you can back out, check whether your contract is one the law specifically lets you cancel.

Where CourtStairs fits

CourtStairs answers everyday questions like these with citations to the primary Canadian sources: the Criminal Code, the Civil Code of Québec, provincial statutes, and reported cases, so you can see where the answer comes from and read it yourself. It works in English and French and has a free tier.

Laws change and vary by province, so confirm anything important against the primary source or a lawyer.