News & Announcements

The Alberta Debtor Support Project ramps up existing pro bono legal resources, and also offers two new resources to assist Albertans struggling with debt. The Project website provides an overview of the resources available and offers a portal for lawyers, both active and retired, to volunteer to assist Albertans dealing with debt. Volunteers will receive detailed online training to meet the expected increased demand for assistance. The project hopes to partner with additional Approved Legal Service Providers throughout Alberta to encourage and train their volunteers. For more information, please refer to the full announcement.

It is now possible for counsel to file all materials in Civil and Family proceedings electronically, via email. However, in some locations, up to 50% of the materials received by the Court have been filed with the clerk, at the counter, on paper. For the time being, while the public health crisis persists, it is in the interests of public health – and in the interests of the health of Court staff as well as counsel, court runners, and any other individuals who may be required to file materials – that personal attendance at courthouses and filing queues be avoided. To that end, the Court is mandating that any material filed by counsel, in any civil or family proceeding, must be filed electronically, via email, per the directions set out in the December 11, 2020 Announcement from RCAS.

If you have been summonsed to attend jury selection, you may apply for an exemption to the requirement to attend jury selection if: you have health concerns that make you more vulnerable to COVID-19; or you live with or are required to provide care for an individual who has health concerns that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19. An exemption may be applied for by completing and returning the jury summons which was mailed to you to by the Clerk's Office. The instructions for doing so can be found in the package. ​ An online version of the Jury Summary Response form is available here: https://www.albertacourts.ca/qb/jury ​

Recent amendments to the Alberta Rules of Court have prescribed new forms of Affidavit of Applicant for Divorce (Form FL-23) and Affidavit of Applicants for Divorce (Joint) (Form FL-24) effective November 1, 2020. It is the responsibility of litigants or their counsel to ensure that, starting on November 1, 2020, they are fully complying with these new forms. However, to ensure continued access to justice for litigants, a grace period will be observed until January 1, 2021 before the requirement for compliance will be strictly enforced.

Effective immediately, Family Practice Note 9 – Intake, Resolution and Caseflow Management – Calgary and Red Deer – will remain in effect in Calgary only.

Resolution and Court Administration Services has added a new naming convention for Emergency Masters matters. For more information, please see the full announcement.

The Court of Queen’s Bench is extending the pilot project for the enforcement of the Mandatory Alternative Dispute Resolution Rules 8.4(3)(a) and 8.5(1)(a) until further notice.

the Court of Queen’s Bench has decided to implement a process as recommended in K.G.K. by which inquiries can be made by counsel or self-represented parties about the status of a reserved decision in all areas of the law. Counsel or self-represented parties wishing to inquire about the status of a reserved decision of a Justice or Applications Judge may do so by writing to the Chief Justice.

With the implementation of Family Docket Court in Calgary and Edmonton, and in accordance with the new responsibilities assigned to Case Management Counsel (CMC) (now referred to as Resolution Counsel or RC), the Court is making a number of changes to the way it conducts case management.

During the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as the Court prepares for post-pandemic operations, a number of proceedings will continue to be conducted via online videoconference (Online Hearings). Counsel, parties, witnesses, the media and the public are expected to review and comply with the general guidelines found in the Instructions and Etiquette Guide for Online Hearings, which is located on the Court of Queen's Bench website. For additional information, please refer to the full announcement.