The right remedy, filed in the right court.

Once a debtor has ignored invoices, reminders and a legal notice, a recovery suit is usually the next step. We put together the paper trail that proves the debt, calculate the claim properly and file in the court with jurisdiction. Acting for defendants, we test the claim against the contract and the accounts and take every legitimate objection.

Claims on cheques, promissory notes and certain written contracts can proceed under Order XXXVII CPC, where the defendant must obtain leave before defending at all. We check that the claim genuinely qualifies, since a misfiled summary suit wastes months. For defendants, the leave application is the whole case at that stage, and we prepare it accordingly.

If someone denies or clouds your title, status or legal character, a declaratory suit under the Specific Relief Act 1877 may set the record straight. The declaration has to be framed around the real dispute. A bare declaration can be refused where further relief was available, so we usually join a claim for possession or an injunction.

A seller who takes earnest money and then refuses to complete can be compelled to perform, provided money would not fairly compensate the buyer. Courts examine the buyer's own conduct closely, so we start with the agreement, the payment record and evidence of readiness. We also apply to stop the property being sold on while the suit is pending.

A forged sale deed or a power of attorney obtained by fraud can strip someone of property if it is left alone. We file suits to cancel such instruments, obtain certified copies from the sub-registrar and other offices, and arrange handwriting or forensic examination where a signature is disputed. Preserving the property while the case runs is usually the first application.

Dispossession, unlawful construction and interference with a right of way are the classic cases for an injunction. A temporary order holds the position while the suit is heard; a permanent injunction is the final relief. We act just as often for defendants who need an unjustified restraint lifted or confined to its proper limits.

Rent law differs from province to province and sometimes between localities, so the first task is confirming which statute governs the premises. Landlords come to us for eviction and arrears; tenants come to resist eviction they consider unlawful. In both cases the tenancy agreement and rent record form the backbone of the case before the rent controller.

Where a breach of contract or a civil wrong has caused real, measurable loss, the claim is for compensation. The difficult part is usually proof. We help clients separate losses the law will compensate from those it will not, and build the figures on documents and, where needed, expert evidence. For defendants we attack causation, remoteness and inflated numbers.

A first appeal lets the appellate court look again at facts and law; a second appeal or revision is much narrower. Picking the wrong remedy can cost the client the challenge altogether. We select the correct one, tie each ground to a specific error in the record, and seek a stay where execution would cause harm that cannot be undone.