What should I do to preserve evidence when I think a lawsuit is coming in Ontario?

Once you reasonably anticipate litigation in Ontario — whether you plan to be the plaintiff or you believe a claim may be brought against you — you have a duty to preserve all potentially relevant evidence. Failing to do so can result in the court drawing an adverse inference against you (assuming the destroyed evidence would have hurt your case) or even imposing cost sanctions.

Practical steps include: identifying and securing all relevant documents, emails, text messages, photographs, videos, and records; contacting your IT department or provider if records are stored digitally; suspending any automatic deletion or overwriting routines for relevant data; taking photographs of physical evidence before conditions change; and preserving devices or equipment at issue in the dispute.

In the corporate context, sending a formal "litigation hold" notice to all employees who may have relevant documents is standard practice. The litigation hold instructs employees not to delete, modify, or dispose of anything related to the dispute. For individuals, the principle is the same: preserve everything that might be relevant, even if you are not sure it helps you. Erring on the side of preservation is always safer than erring on the side of deletion. Speaking with a lawyer promptly after learning of a potential claim helps ensure your preservation obligations are properly understood and met.