Exhibits to an Ontario affidavit: the mark and the two routes

An exhibit is something an affidavit points to as part of the sworn evidence: a lease, a bank statement, a printed text message. In Ontario's civil courts it is governed by one subrule, rule 4.06 (3) of the Rules of Civil Procedure. The person taking the affidavit has to mark the exhibit as an exhibit. After that, the words used in the affidavit decide where it goes.

So a document stapled behind a typed affidavit is only part of the way there. The mark goes on at the appointment, and it ties that page to one person's statement.

Two phrases in the affidavit send an exhibit two different ways

The subrule separates exhibits by how the affidavit describes them, and it treats each kind differently once the oath is done.

A third clause applies to both: where an exhibit is a document, a copy is served with the affidavit, unless that is impractical. By speaking separately of an exhibit that "is a document", the clause also shows that an exhibit can be something other than paper. The rule gives no list of what belongs on which route.

Sometimes another rule makes the choice. An account taken before a referee, verified by affidavit, is referred to in that affidavit as an exhibit and is not attached to it, under rule 55.04 (3).

What goes on the exhibit at the appointment

Ontario's Ministry of the Attorney General publishes a guide for newly appointed commissioners, last updated January 9, 2026. Its section on exhibits is the closest thing to a description of the step, and the drawing below follows its sample sentence.

What the rule requires, and what is habit

Rule 4.06 (3) requires a mark and says who makes it. It prescribes no wording, no letter and no tab, and the sentence above is offered by the guide as a suggestion. Initialling each page is described as what many commissioners do, which makes it a custom and a sensible one.

Letters are a habit too. The guide's example uses "A", and affidavits usually carry the same letter in the paragraph that mentions the document, for instance "a copy of the lease is attached as Exhibit A". That pairing is what the commissioner's question checks: the letter in the text and the letter on the page have to lead to the same paper.

Exhibits at a trial follow a different rule altogether. Under rule 52.04 they are marked and numbered consecutively, and the registrar attending the trial keeps a list describing each one and who put it in evidence. An exhibit to an affidavit is marked earlier, outside the courtroom, by whoever takes the oath.

Other rules that call for exhibits by name

Several Ontario rules say which papers have to arrive as exhibits, and one limits how many pages they can run to.

Where it appears	What the rule asks for
Family Law Rules, r. 36 (5), the Form 36 divorce affidavit	Income and financial information required by section 21 of the child support guidelines, attached as exhibits
Family Law Rules, r. 25.1 (14), money paid out of court on consent	Copies of photo identification, proof of date of birth and proof of current address
Family Law Rules, r. 43 (13), binding judicial dispute resolution	An affidavit of up to 12 pages without its exhibits, and exhibits of up to 10 pages, leaving out the documents the subrule lists separately, unless the court orders otherwise
Rules of Civil Procedure, r. 74.04 (1), a will going to probate	The original will and any codicils, attached and marked as an exhibit
Rules of Civil Procedure, r. 73.02 (3), registering a United Kingdom judgment	The judgment and the original proof of service, or certified copies of them

The divorce affidavit is explained on the Form 36 page, and the will's affidavit in the article on the affidavit of execution.

Family court and Small Claims Court

Rule 4.06 belongs to the Rules of Civil Procedure, and two busy courts run on rules of their own. The Family Law Rules mention exhibits in passages like those in the table, without a general subrule on marking them. The Rules of the Small Claims Court, O. Reg. 258/98, do not use the word at all. Both sets have a clause for matters they do not cover adequately: rule 1 (7) of the Family Law Rules and rule 1.03.1 of the Small Claims rules. Each leaves the practice to analogy and, where the court considers it appropriate, to the Rules of Civil Procedure. A Small Claims affidavit of service is covered in the article on Form 8A.

A mark on a page is not a certified copy

The marking sentence says one thing: this is the exhibit the affidavit refers to. It doesn't say the page is a true copy of an original, or that what the page says is correct. Those facts rest on the deponent's oath, and rule 4.06 (2) confines an affidavit to what the deponent knows personally or could give as evidence in court.

Comparing a copy with its original is a separate notarial act with its own wording, described on the certification of documents page. When a receiving office asks for a certified copy, the exhibit mark does not stand in for that.

Changes to the affidavit have a rule as well. Under rule 4.06 (9), any line written in, erasure or other alteration is initialled by the person taking the affidavit. Without those initials, the affidavit can't be used unless the presiding judge or officer gives leave. The guide adds that some commissioners ask the deponent to initial the change too.

How exhibits are handled at this office

Ilya Kershtein is both a notary public and a commissioner for taking affidavits, so either title on a form can be met at one appointment. Exhibits are marked and initialled here while the person swearing is present. That holds for a statutory declaration too, even though rule 4.06 speaks only of affidavits, as the statutory declarations page explains.

The appointment calls for the affidavit unsigned, valid photo identification and every exhibit the affidavit mentions. Which documents belong in an affidavit is decided by the deponent or their lawyer. The role at this desk is to confirm identity, administer the oath or affirmation, watch the signature and mark what the statement refers to, as set out on the affidavits page.