Form 10A: Defendant's Claim

What the 10A is

Form 10A lets a defendant bring their own claim within the same case — against the plaintiff, or against someone else entirely (a subcontractor, another driver) — where it arises out of the same transaction or occurrence, or is otherwise related. It is heard together with the main claim, by the same judge, usually on the same day.

The deadline: a Defendant’s Claim should be filed within 20 days after the Defence is filed (the court can extend). It has the same $50,000 ceiling and is served like a Plaintiff’s Claim on any new parties.

How to fill it out

1. Decide who you are claiming against — plaintiff, third party, or both — and name them precisely (corporate searches again).
2. Plead it like a Plaintiff’s Claim: numbered paragraphs, what was agreed, what went wrong, the amount, how it’s calculated, documents attached. Don’t just mirror your Defence — this is your affirmative case.
3. File within 20 days of your Defence and pay the fee.
4. Serve every defendant to your claim (personal service rules apply to new parties) and file the 8A proof.
5. At trial, be ready to prove your claim independently — winning the defence does not automatically win the Defendant’s Claim.