Limited Liability Partnerships, Final Report 77

In Alberta, professionals conduct their trades through professional corporations, which do not entitle these professionals to the same types of limited liability protection enjoyed by shareholders in traditional business corporations. The issue this report considers is whether certain professions, which are currently required to practice in unlimited liability firms (such as accounting, legal, and health care), should be allowed to practice through limited liability firms. This report recommends that these professions, and all others, be […]

April 29, 1999

Limited Liability Partnerships and Other Hybrid Business Entities, Issues Paper 4

At the time of this paper’s publication, certain types of professionals (namely, accountants, lawyers, and certain health care professionals) were required to work in a setting of “unlimited liability,” meaning that the individual professionals could be held liable for debts and other liabilities incurred by the company for which they worked. This paper addresses the issue of that unlimited liability, and suggests that there was a “liability crisis” at the time, and therefore an urgent […]

March 4, 1998

Corporate Directors’ Liability, Research Paper 17

This paper addresses the question of the standard of care required from the directors of corporations. At the time of publication, there were different commonlaw rules about Corporate Directors’ Liability in different jurisdictions: that in Alberta being that “a director is not expected to exhibit ‘a greater degree of skill than may [reasonably] be expected from a person of his [sic] knowledge and experience’”; that in Delaware being much higher, that in Indiana being lower; […]

February 3, 1989

Defences to Provincial Charges, Final Report 39

This report deals with charges of “provincial offences” which are offences under “enactments” (e.g. Alberta statutes, orders-in-council, regulations and municipal by-laws). True criminal offences are covered by the Criminal Code of Canada and some other federal legislation. A draft of proposed amendments to the Summary Convictions Act is attached. This report recommends that the three categories of regulatory offences (mens rea, absolute liability, and strict liability) be retained and that tests for them are established […]

March 1, 1984

Interspousal Tort Immunity, Final Report 33

This report addresses the issue of whether inter-spousal tort immunity should be abolished. It addresses the present state of the law in Alberta, other common law provinces of Canada, and other Commonwealth countries. It assesses arguments for retaining interspousal tort immunity, and looks particularly at the reasons for domestic harmony, collusion, indirect benefit from own wrongful conduct, and subrogation. This report concludes that there is no merit in placing any restriction upon the type of […]

April 3, 1979

Guest Passenger Legislation, Final Report 32

Neither the common law nor statute law has taken a consistent approach to the guest or gratuitous passenger. This report presents arguments in favour of the guest passenger legislation and arguments in favour of repealing the guest passenger legislation. The report notes that today a large number of guest passengers do not get “something for nothing” and that the probability of reciprocal benefit makes it fair to impose liability on the driver for his or […]

April 2, 1979

Decrease of Capital Without Reducing Liability

January 3, 1975

The Contributory Negligence Act and the Tortfeasors Act

January 2, 1974

Indemnification of Directors

January 1, 1974

Guarantees Acknowledgment Act, RSA 1970, c 173, Final Report 5

In early 1970 the ALRI was asked by the Attorney General of Alberta to study the Guarantees Acknowledgment Act, 1969, and to argue for its removal or preservation. The ALRI then examined various facets of the law related to this statute, sought and received the opinions of several practitioners, and subsequently provided several recommendations. The Guarantees Acknowledgment Act, 1969, should be retained, subject to certain amendments. First, guarantees given on the sale of any interest […]

October 1, 1970