Section 16 of the Matrimonial Property Act, RSA 1980, c M-9, stated that the rights of a person who started a property action against a spouse did not survive that person's death, and thus the action could not be continued by his or her estate. This was based on the legal policy that matrimonial property should be available for the use of a surviving spouse. This report notes that, in practice, this section led to [...]
The Bulk Sales Act, RSA 1980, c B-13, was created to protect the creditors of retailers who sell their stock and disappear before paying off their debts. The Act (as it was at the writing of this report) required that anyone buying an unusually large amount of a retailer's stock and trade fixtures must first obtain a list of the retailer's debts, and must pay the retailer's creditors directly (or obtain their consent), before the [...]
Limitation periods, as discussed in this report, dictate the amount of time in which one may bring a civil claim to court for some sort of relief. After the limitation period for a claim has passed, the defendant will be immune to liability for that claim. This report addresses the complex and technical nature of limitation law as it was at the time, and recommends a new Model Limitations Act. This Act covers most, but [...]
Section 42 of the Alberta Business Corporations Act (as it was at the time of the writing of this report) made it illegal for a corporation to provide financial assistance to: - a shareholder or director of that corporation or an affiliated corporation; - an associate of any or the above; or - a purchaser of shares of that corporation or an affiliated corporation if that corporation was not "solvent" as defined by the ABCA. [...]
This report addresses the position (at the time of its writing) of opposite-sex couples living together on a domestic basis without a legal marriage. Since these partnerships carry many of the same responsibilities as marriage partnerships, the report suggests that they be afforded similar (but not identical) protections under the law. Twenty-one recommendations are provided here, with the majority opinions falling roughly into the following categories: - Non-married opposite-sex cohabitants should have an official status, [...]
This report recommends the draft legislation Competence and Human Reproduction Act to create a decision-making process regarding sterilization for those not legally competent to make the decision themselves. The Act replaces the blanket prohibition of Re Eve with legislation that allows for a judgment based on the best interest of the individual and an empathy for her situation. The Institute concluded that no person should be denied access to sterilization because she is not competent [...]
This report considers the Arbitration Act, RSA 1980, c A-43, as it was current to the publication of the report. The report considers two principal difficulties users had with the Act: the fact that it left many practical problems unsolved; and the "unduly broad" scope for discretionary intervention by the courts, which would frustrate the desire of many arbitrating parties to avoid litigation. The report presents a draft Act, patterned on the UNCITRAL Model Law [...]
This report is first in a series of final reports on the general topic of remedies of unsecured creditors. The report contains detailed recommendations for a legislative solution regarding the inadequacies identified in the available prejudgment remedies for unsecured claimants in Alberta. It details a variety of prejudgment remedies that currently exist and identifies as a problem the absence of any unifying principle in their application. There is discussion of the Mareva injunction, which has [...]
This report makes recommendations for the enactment of a new Incorporated Associations Act, which would repeal both the Companies Act and the Societies Act and apply only to true non-profit associations. The Act would not replace some specialized statutes such as the Cemetery Companies Act, the Co-operative Associations Act, and the Agricultural Societies Act and would not apply to non-profit corporations incorporated by the Legislature under special individual Acts. Many parts of the draft Act [...]
The legal protection of trade secrets is a desirable objective for the law to pursue and requires improvement through the implementation of new civil and criminal law measures. This report recommends the creation of two new statutory torts to protect the plaintiff who is without an agreement that is governed by the general law of contract. The first tort is aimed at industrial espionage in relation to trade secrets and would make the acquisition of [...]
