united-kingdom canada international litigation
How to file a lawsuit against a Canadian national from the UK?
<p>My uncle is a British national. Around 8 years back he helped his distant relative living in Canada who was in a financial difficulty by giving him a loan of approx £30K with an agreement that he will repay the full principal amount along with interest in 2 years' time. The relative has not repaid the loan and has not responded to attempts to contact him.</p>
<p>My uncle would like to formally lodge a complaint and summon him but don't know the legal procedure as the relative is not in the UK and is not a UK national.</p>
<p>I would like to know if it's possible to file a lawsuit, and if so, where will it be filed.</p>

<h2>Yes, it’s possible</h2>
<p>The court doesn’t care where you live or what your nationality is, just that there is some nexus between your dispute and their jurisdiction.</p>
<p>On the face of it, this could be brought in either country - this is a provincial matter in Canada and a national matter (England/Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland) in the UK. The procedural matters don’t change just because one of the parties is in another country - both have rules for serving papers in foreign jurisdictions.</p>
<p>However, he might not be able to sue at all - both Canada and the UK have a 6-year limitation period for commencing legal action on a debt running from the default. It depends on if the 2 years to repay plus the 6 years after he didn’t is more or less than “around 8 years ago”. If it’s more, legal action cannot be commenced except by leave of the court which is only done in exceptional circumstances which I don’t see here.</p>
<p>Your uncle needs legal advice now.</p>
