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How to respond to an originating claim (simplified civil process) (from 1 April 2022)

Find out the different ways you can respond to an originating claim served on you if the simplified civil process applies to your case.

Note

This page is for matters that the Rules of Court 2021 apply to. For content relating to matters that the Rules of Court 2014 apply, click here.

If you are uncertain as to which version of the Rules of Court applies to your matter, click here.

Note

Before you respond

Before you respond to an OC, make sure you:

Understand the simplified civil process.
Understand the details in the OC served on you.

You may choose to file the documents personally or through a lawyer. If you are represented by a lawyer, the documents will be filed by your lawyer.

If you are representing yourself, you must file all documents via eLitigation at the CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.

You must follow the Rules of Court 2021 and the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 to prepare your documents before heading down personally to do the filing.

Ways to respond

You can respond to an OC in the following ways.

The party who filed the claim against you is the claimant.

You are the defendant.

Note

If you do not wish to contest the claim, you may contact the claimant or their lawyer immediately to try and negotiate a settlement.

This will minimise the legal costs you will have to pay in comparison to if you contest the claim.

Alternatively, you may serve on the claimant a letter of offer prepared in accordance with Form 4 of Annex A1 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021. You should not file an Offer to Settle in court.

If you wish to contest the claim (also known as to defend a claim), you must:

File and serve a copy of a notice of intention to contest or not contest on the claimant or their lawyers (if any) within 14 days after the statement of claim is served on you if served in Singapore, or within 21 days if served outside of Singapore.
File and serve a pleading called a defence on the claimant 21 days after the statement of claim is served on you in Singapore, or within 5 weeks if served outside Singapore.
- You may also make a counterclaim in the same action if you think you have a claim against the claimant. In this case, you should be filing a pleading known as the defence and counterclaim.
- For cases where the simplified civil process applies, when you file and serve a pleading on the other party, you must also file and serve a list of documents prepared in accordance with Form 1 of Annex A1 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021.
- A list of documents sets out the documents that a party has in their possession or control which fall within one or more of the following categories:
  - all documents that the party in question will be relying on;
  - all known adverse documents; and
  - applicable documents that fall within a broader scope of discovery as agreed between the parties or ordered by the Court.

If you choose not to respond

It is important to respond to an OC if you wish to contest the claim. The claimant may file a request or seek permission of the court to enter a default judgement against you if you do not:

File and serve a copy of the notice of intention to contest or not contest within the time limit.
File and serve a copy of your defence (or defence and counterclaim) within the time limit.

Estimated fees

Refer to the following to find out the fees to file the documents. You may also refer to Fourth Schedule of the Rules of Court for the full list of court fees.

In addition to the fees listed in the table, there are also other fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.

Item	Fees
File a notice of intention to contest or not contest	$10
File a defence	$10
File a counterclaim	$10

In addition to the fees listed in the table, there are also other fees payable to the LawNet & CrimsonLogic Service Bureau.

Item	Fees
File a notice of intention to contest or not contest	$20
File a defence	$20
File a counterclaim	$20

Third-party proceedings

You may apply to the court to add a person as a third party to a civil action after you have filed the notice of intention to contest or not contest if any of the following apply:

You claim that the person who is not already a party to the action should be made to compensate you or contribute towards the claimant’s claim.
You claim that the person who is not already a party to the action is related to or connected with the original subject-matter of the action and should be made to contribute to the relief or remedy claimed by the claimant.
You require that any question or issue relating to or connected with the original subject-matter of the action should be determined together with the claimant and the person not already a party to the action.

This is known as a third-party proceeding. In third-party proceedings, you will be known as the claimant and the third party will be known as the defendant.

Apply for permission of court

You will need to apply for permission of court before issuing a notice on the third party (third party notice).

Note

Permission from the court must be sought by summons without notice prepared in accordance with Form 22 of Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021, supported by an affidavit stating:

The nature of the claim made by the original claimant in the action.
The stage which proceedings in the action have reached.
The nature of your claim or particulars of the question or issue required to be determined and the facts on which your proposed third party notice is based.
The name and address of the person to be issued the third party notice.

If the court grants permission, you can then issue a third party notice prepared in accordance with Form 20 of Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021 or Form 21 of Appendix A2 of the State Courts Practice Directions 2021.

Note

Need help?

The information here is for general guidance as the courts do not provide legal advice. If you need further help, you may want to get independent legal advice.

Find out more