Executive Summary: Key Legal and Evidentiary Issues

• Insufficient detail on concrete steps taken by the plaintiff to locate the defendant before resorting to special service.
• Lack of evidence that traditional, more reliable modes of service were exhausted as a precondition to using Facebook.
• Doubts about the reliability of Facebook as a communication channel without proof of recent, continuous use by the defendant.
• Failure to show that Facebook service would likely bring the proceeding to the defendant’s attention and allow it to protect its rights.
• Incomplete information about other available electronic communications (email or messaging) previously used between the parties.
• Discretionary power under article 112 C.p.c. could not be properly exercised due to gaps in the evidentiary record.

Facts of the case

Excavation St-Césaire inc. sued Excavation et transport GT inc. in the Court of Québec, Civil Chamber, claiming a commercial debt for goods allegedly taken by the defendant but not fully paid. The plaintiff seeks 17,820.94 dollars as the unpaid balance, plus interest, reimbursement of extrajudicial legal fees, and 5,000 dollars in punitive damages. These amounts relate to the underlying merits and are not determined in the present judgment. Procedurally, the plaintiff had difficulty serving its originating application at the defendant’s registered head office address on file with the Registraire des entreprises, asserting that the defendant no longer occupied the premises and that service attempts there had failed. It alleged having made “various verifications” to locate the defendant but did not specify what those efforts were or whether any professional investigative assistance was used. In this context, Excavation St-Césaire inc. applied for authorization to serve its initiating pleading through a Facebook page it claimed was created and operated by the defendant. The plaintiff stated that the page was active, but did not provide dates of the last interactions or objective indicators showing that the page was recently and regularly used by the defendant. The plaintiff also referred to prior exchanges with the defendant that may have occurred through messaging applications or email, suggesting other possible electronic channels, although these were not fully developed in the motion.

Legal framework and issues

The request was made under article 112 of the Code of Civil Procedure (C.p.c.), which allows the court, where circumstances require, to authorize service by a mode other than those ordinarily provided and to determine the applicable proof. Québec courts have previously accepted Facebook as a valid method of service, but only in cases where it is treated as a last resort and where strong evidence shows it is a reliable way to reach the intended recipient. The central issues were whether the plaintiff had shown diligent and concrete efforts to serve the defendant by conventional means, and whether it had proven that service via this specific Facebook page was likely to come to the defendant’s attention. The judge emphasized that social media often functions as a secondary communication tool that many users consult sporadically. Without proof of recent, continuous use and of monitoring mechanisms (such as notifications), the court cannot safely assume that a Facebook message will effectively notify the defendant of a pending lawsuit. The overarching goal of service is to inform the defendant of the proceedings so it can organize its defense, and any special mode must be assessed against that objective.

Court’s analysis and outcome

The Court, per the Honourable Daniel Lévesque, J.C.Q., found the plaintiff’s description of its search efforts too vague to show that ordinary modes of service were exhausted. There was no specific evidence of concrete investigative steps, such as hiring an investigation firm or conducting structured tracing inquiries. Regarding Facebook, the plaintiff failed to prove that the page was actively and consistently used by the defendant in a way that would make it a reliable channel for service. The Court stressed that each application for a special mode of service is fact-specific and that its discretion under article 112 C.p.c. must be based on complete and persuasive information. Given the evidentiary gaps about both the prior search efforts and the actual use of the Facebook page, the judge concluded that the statutory conditions for authorizing Facebook service as a last resort were not met. The motion for authorization of a special mode of service was therefore dismissed. The merits of the underlying commercial claim—including the 17,820.94 dollars claimed, the 5,000 dollars in punitive damages, and the extrajudicial fees—remain undecided. In this procedural ruling, the successful party is Excavation et transport GT inc., the defendant, because the plaintiff’s application was rejected. No damages, interest, or costs were awarded, so the total monetary award, costs, and damages ordered in favor of the successful party amount to 0 dollars.