Can Paralegals perform Skip Traces?

In Ontario, skip tracing — the process of locating someone who may be avoiding contact or whose whereabouts are unknown — is commonly used in legal matters involving debt collection, personal service of legal documents, or confirming an address for court filings. While skip tracing is often associated with private investigators, licensed paralegals can also engage in this activity, but only under specific conditions.

Paralegals in Ontario are regulated by the Law Society of Ontario and are authorized to provide legal services within a defined scope. This includes areas such as Small Claims Court, landlord and tenant disputes, and certain provincial offences. When skip tracing is a necessary step in delivering these services — for example, locating a debtor in a Small Claims Court action, finding a respondent in a Landlord and Tenant Board matter, or confirming an address before serving a claim — a paralegal may lawfully conduct the search as part of their legal representation.

The key factor is that the skip tracing must be directly tied to the legal service the paralegal was hired to perform. It cannot be offered as a stand-alone investigative service, nor can it cross into the territory of private investigation, which is regulated separately under Ontario’s Private Security and Investigative Services Act. That law restricts investigative activities such as surveillance, background checks, or conducting searches for hire unless the person is a licensed private investigator.

Paralegals can, however, use publicly available tools and legal databases to locate individuals when needed for tasks like filing a claim, confirming service, or enforcing a judgment. This might include searching court records, government registries, property databases, or using client-supplied information. As long as the activity is clearly connected to the paralegal’s legal representation — and does not involve techniques reserved for licensed investigators — it is within the permitted scope of practice.

For clients, this means that a licensed paralegal can often help locate someone in the context of a legal case, without the added cost of hiring a separate investigator. For paralegals, it’s important to stay within the boundaries of what is legally allowed, and to be clear with clients about what type of skip tracing assistance can be provided under their license.