The Profile outlines competencies that Alberta lawyers can choose to develop or refine as part of their professional development and annual CPD plan. The draft competencies are broad areas, such as practice management or lawyer-client relationships, that also include performance indicators or examples of observable behaviors that can be developed with respect to the selected competency.

The Profile will serve as a foundation for the Law Society’s approach to professional development for Alberta lawyers going forward.

The Law Society’s new approach to CPD for Alberta lawyers is to be more self-directed, while also providing guidance about competencies. The Profile is meant to provide guidance when lawyers are selecting areas for professional development that are meaningful to them and their practice at different stages of their career. 

The Profile was drafted to have broad application to various practice settings. Some content will not be applicable to all lawyers depending on their career stage or practice setting. The Profile is not intended to be used as a checklist and lawyers will not be required to demonstrate competency in every area in the Profile each year. A minimum hours requirement will not be added.

To learn more, read our frequently asked questions and stay tuned as more information and training will be provided on how to use the Profile as it is rolled out to the profession later this year.

If you have questions about the Law Society’s new approach to CPD, please contact our Education department. 

Although the CPD filing requirement was lifted for an additional year until 2023, CPD activities remain crucial for lawyers in fulfilling their Code of Conduct obligations respecting competent legal service delivery. Lawyers are still encouraged to develop an annual CPD plan, whether on their own or by using the CPD planning tool through the Lawyer Portal, which continues to be available to track and declare professional development activities. 

As a reminder, the Indigenous Cultural Competency education, The Path (Alberta), was launched to provide lawyers with ongoing professional development. For most lawyers, the Path (Alberta) training must be complete by October 2022, or otherwise within the 18-month timeframe for completion. 

Learning doesn’t stop once law school ends. Like other professions, lawyers must stay up to speed with technology, issues, and consumer needs. Taking the time to schedule professional development benefits you as a lawyer, your law firm or organization and your clients.

Thank you to the more than 500 individuals who attended our Jan. 20 webinar on the changes to the Trust Safety rules, which came into effect on Jan. 1.

The webinar was recorded and is now available for viewing. Watch the recording, including the Q&A session.

Due to the overwhelming popularity of the webinar, we are offering an additional session on March 2, where we will present the changes to the rules, highlight some of the key areas where the rules are modernized and discuss next steps.

Date: Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Time: Noon - 1 p.m.

The ALRI is seeking feedback from the legal community on issues related to the Dower Act.

The Dower Act protects a spouse if the couple’s home is owned by the other spouse. The Act applies to a “homestead” which is defined as a parcel of land where the owner lives or has lived. The Dower Act became law in Alberta over one hundred years ago and hasn't changed much since 1948.

The ALRI is reviewing several issues including the exclusion of Adult Interdependent Partners (common-law partners) as well as outdated and unclear language and has published two reports for discussion and needs feedback on its proposals.

Dower Act: Consent to Disposition, Report for Discussion 36 examines the parts of the Dower Act related to a spouse’s right to prevent a “disposition” of the homestead by withholding consent to any sale, lease, mortgage or other transfer of a homestead.

Dower Act: Life Estate, Report for Discussion 37 examines the parts of the Dower Act that give a spouse a “life estate” after the homeowner dies. A life estate means the surviving spouse may keep the home for their lifetime.

Complete this survey to have your say on ALRI's proposals.

In an effort to modernize and expedite scheduling, justice seized specials, civil and family case management, reviews and assessments and bar admissions will observe a new and enhanced scheduling practice, commencing Jan. 17, 2022. Learn more.

Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta Master Order 6, dated Dec. 31, 2021, expired at the end of Friday, Jan. 21, 2022. Though the Court is faced with significant staff shortages as a result of COVID-19, it has been determined that matters scheduled for the week of Jan. 24, 2022 will proceed as described in the full announcement.

In response to the increase in COVID-19 cases and specifically the spread of the Omicron variant in the province, the Provincial Court of Alberta has implemented these measures.

Revised protocols will be updated to the COVID-19 Court Information page as soon as available.