The Law Society of Alberta will be closed starting Thursday, December 24, reopening Monday, January 4, 2021. 

 

As a reminder, the billing deadline is December 31 for Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) certificate renewals, Professional Corporation (PC) permit renewals and the second instalment of the ALIA Indemnity Assessment. The Law Society has the following resources to assist you with completing payment.

Resolution and Court Administration Services (RCAS) wishes to remind lawyers that the Court of Queen's Bench Clerk's Office will be closed on December 24, 2020 and through January 3, 2021, inclusive. On December 29 - 31, 2020 a Justice will be available in Edmonton to hear any emergency matters during this time.

The Clerks' Office will not be accepting email filing during the Christmas closure, and similarly courthouses will not be open so as to allow access to filing drop boxes or the counters. All filing should be provided to the Clerks' office by 4 p.m. on December 23, whether through email or drop box. Filing will not be accepted until courthouses reopen on January 4, 2021.

From the date the Court of Queen's Bench first modified its operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 16, 2020, the Court and Resolution and Court Administration Services (RCAS), have dedicated significant resources to the development and implementation of electronic processes for filing in all civil and family proceedings. On July 27, 2020, RCAS announced new email filing procedures and naming conventions to be used by law firms, lawyers and court runners. On December 11, 2020, that Announcement, with modifications to the naming conventions, was updated, and is posted here.

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.

A checklist for Filing Electronic Documents has been posted to the Court’s website.