COVID-19 Announcements

Effective July 4, 2022, masking, as with social distancing, is no longer mandatory in public areas, including courtrooms, or secure workplaces in Alberta courthouses. However, a presiding Judge or Master may direct either or both masking and social distancing in a particular courtroom where the circumstances so warrant.

Masking requirements and restrictions on persons who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19 continue to be in effect.

Court of Queen’s Bench Administration has extended the cap on email, digital and fax filing fees until October 31, 2022. In addition to regular filing fees, documents that are filed digitally, by email or by fax will be charged at the rate of $1 per page, capped to a maximum of $20.

Effective May 24, 2022, social distancing requirements and related capacity limits due to COVID 19 will be rescinded in some courtrooms in Alberta as noted below. While social distancing in those courtrooms will no longer be required, it is, nevertheless, still encouraged. We stress that social distancing and capacity limits remain in effect in all Provincial Court courtrooms until further notice. All restrictions in relation to masking, vaccination policies and the current use of Plexiglass remain in effect until further notice.

Effective May 19, 2022, individuals who have received a summons to attend for jury selection at the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta will no longer be required to produce an Alberta-issued COVID-19 vaccine record.

Effective May 2, 2022, the restrictions on access to courthouses set out in the Alberta Courts’ Notice to the Public and Legal Profession of March 26, 2020, will be lifted. Access to Alberta courthouses will no longer be restricted to the categories of individuals set out in that Notice. All other COVID-19 measures currently in place, including the use of Plexiglas barriers, mandatory masking, courtroom capacity limits, physical distancing, and vaccination policies will remain in effect until further notice.

Effective immediately, and until further notice, jury selections in Calgary will return to the Calgary Courts Centre. Social distancing, masking and all other current pandemic-related measures will continue to be observed.

UPDATED Announcement : A designated naming convention must be followed for all emails sent to the Court of Queen’s Bench which contain documents for filing. If the naming convention as outlined is not followed, your documents will be sent back to you unfiled, advising you did not use the proper naming convention for the covering email. For full filing details, including specific naming conventions and examples, please refer to the full announcement.

Throughout the COVID–19 pandemic, courthouses across the province have been operating under restrictions designed to ensure the safety of all participants. Given the unique position of the Courts, where persons who attend are often compelled to do so, and where vulnerable segments of the population attend, there is an ongoing need to continue with the restrictions and policies presently in place until further notice.

Given the current restrictions on congregations and courtrooms, the Court will continue to conduct Bar Admissions remotely. Bar Admissions will be conducted via Webex, which will allow a student's family and friends to attend via Webex link.

Criminal jury selections and jury trials will resume at the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta, effective September 8, 2020. To ensure the safety of everyone involved, jury selections and jury trials will be, for the most part, be held offsite, in twelve locations across Alberta.

To facilitate the effective receipt, handling, management and use of these documents by Court staff and the judiciary, the Court has prepared the guidelines, applicable to all documents filed by email or digital upload. All counsel and parties are expected to comply with these Guidelines to the greatest extent permitted by their technological resources.

The Court of Queen’s Bench will resume Criminal Appearance Court (“CAC”) province wide commencing June 5, 2020 via Webex with regular CAC dates listed in the Court Calendar and those added in the Master Orders. Booking priority will be given on CAC lists in June to September 4, 2020 to in-custody matters, trials that were Jordan-threatened prior to the pandemic and trial adjournments from March 16 to June 26, 2020.

Commencing June, July and August, 2020, the Court will be hearing some short, judge-alone Criminal trials in-person in COVID-safe courtrooms. The Court will also be hearing some short, judge-alone Criminal trials via Webex video, where the accused is represented by Counsel and both Crown and Defence Counsel agree to proceed in this manner.

Legal Aid Alberta is providing legal assistance to parties to Court of Queen's Bench Emergency Protection Order Review hearings remotely. See the Legal Aid Alberta announcement, and important information for Applicants and Respondents, at this link: https://www.legalaid.ab.ca/Pages/default.aspx

Applications for grants of probate and administration require the execution and submission of documents to the Court. Several of those documents, such as NC 1 and NC 2, require the original signature of the Applicant. Surrogate Rule 16 requires the Applicant to mark the back of the will for identification. NC 6.1, if applicable, requires a trustee to execute an acknowledgment. Depending on the circumstances, other affidavits, such as NC 8, NC 9 and NC 11, may be required to be completed and filed.

If you have questions about processes and procedures at the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta in the wake of #COVID-19, please consult our FAQ webpage, posted today: https://www.albertacourts.ca/qb/court-operations-schedules/pandemic-operations/FAQ

The Court continues to hear emergency and urgent matters during the COVID-19 outbreak. A definition of which matters may be deemed to be emergency or urgent is reproduced here, in full, from Appendix B of the all-Courts' Notice to Profession and Public.

Effective immediately, counsel may submit signed Master and Justice Consent Orders for processing through email.

All requests for an emergency or urgent hearing during the sitting suspension period should be submitted via the online Emergency/Urgent Hearing Request Form. All emergency/urgent hearings will be presided over by Justices or Masters in the following locations, as set out in the Amended Master Order #2 of March 25, 2020.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, some accommodation must be made for the commissioning of affidavits in circumstances where it is not possible or is medically unsafe for the deponent to physically attend before a commissioner. Examples might include deponents who are unable to leave their residences, are not permitted to receive visitors, or for those who are required to self-isolate or self-quarantine.

A message from the Chief Justice of Canada, The Right Honourable Richard Wagner, C.P.

To help contain the spread of COVID-19, the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench is limiting hearings to emergency or urgent matters only.