Family

An adjournment is a request to set court proceedings for a later date. 

The Caseflow Conference process is a program in the Provincial Court in Alberta. It is an alternative to a docket appearance in court before a judge. An applicant files a claim for a parenting order, guardianship order, contact order or an order to enforce time with a child under the Family Law Act.  

Time between the child and an adult who is not the child’s guardian. 

A Court Order that both Parties sign indicating that they agree with everything in the Order. A consent order can be drawn up at any time in the trial process, if the two parties decide to reach an agreement. 

The Dispute Resolution Officer (DRO) Project is a project operating in Calgary only. The project encourages those who wish to apply for child support, or to vary child support, to meet with a senior family lawyer before going to court. The lawyers who act as DRO’s hope to help parties reach agreement on issues without having to appear in front of a judge. 

This is a lower complexity court, where a large volume of matters are typically managed  and presided over by a judge. The Docket Court will be the first court you appear in. 

An EPO is a way to address the immediate safety of victims of family violence. An EPO provides legal protection for the victims of family violence – it is not a criminal charge. An EPO can place orders on a suspected abuser such as not visiting places the victim regularly goes and not communicating with the victim. The EPO can allow the victim to stay in their home and order the suspected abuser to leave. It can also address any other conditions necessary to provide immediate protection of the victim and other family members. 

There is no cost to obtain an EPO. Children and Youth Services caseworkers and police have the ability to apply for an EPO 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Victims can apply for an EPO directly at a Provincial Court during court hours. An EPO must be scheduled for review in the Court of King’s Bench no later than nine working days after it is granted in order to review the information related to it. At the review, the judge will determine what, if any, further order should be granted. 

A legal relationship to a child, which includes entitlements and responsibilities, as determined by section 20 of the Alberta Family Law Act. 

Interim Orders are temporary orders granted by the court until a final order is granted.  Final orders are usually not accompanied by a return court date. 

A method of dispute resolution where a judge meets with opposing parties and their counsel to attempt to facilitate a resolution between the parties. 

The Alberta Maintenance Enforcement Program (MEP) is authorized by the Alberta Maintenance Enforcement Act to ensure that individuals meet their obligations to pay spousal and child support under the terms of their court orders and certain agreements. Once an order or agreement has been registered with MEP, maintenance payments that the debtor (payor) would normally pay directly to the creditor (recipient) are sent to MEP. MEP then forwards the payment to the creditor once the funds have cleared through a trust account. Click here to learn more about the Maintenance Enforcement Program.