I can see that Tana's "governing document" is coorect in the literal sense, but the "governing document" by which civil proceedings are commenced is a statement of claim.


Statement of Claim Definition:
The document which sets out the plaintiff's allegations of fact and thus, engages the judicial process by seeking trial.

Related Terms: Style of Cause, Petition, Writ, Statement of Defence

A written statement of the initiating litigant, called a plaintiff, in which he/she must state their case: the facts on which they intend to rely upon and the relief they seek, to the defendant and for the public record, for which they seek a civil trial and judicial determination.

A document that must be filed with the Court and copied onto the defendant and in which the plaintiff must set out the facts which support his case, usually in numbered paragraphs. the level of detail is a matter of debate amongst barristers; the more experienced ones seeming to prefer succinctness, with others preferring to fully disclose the facts to be transparent and so as to not risk having the Court later discourage any allegations they wish to lead at trial on the basis that they were not alleged in the statement of claim.

In Gevaert v. Arbuckle, 1998, reported at 163 DLR 4th 762, the Ontario Court stated the purpose of a statement of claim:

"A valid Statement of Claim must disclose a presently existing, legally recognized claim against the Defendant. It must say: 'I, Plaintiff, have a claim against you, Defendant.'"