As of January 1, 1996, the Sheriffs functions were taken over by private bailiff companies called civil enforcement agencies. If you need a seizure or eviction done, or a court order carried out, then you must contact a civil enforcement agency. You should be able to find them under C in your local Yellow Pages directory. You can also obtain a list of the agencies on this website or by contacting the Sheriff - Civil Enforcement.

If the creditor has the legal right to seize, then a bailiff could be instructed to seize your property without giving you any prior notice.

If you refuse to allow the bailiff into your residence, then he or she cannot enter without a court order. Causing the bailiff to get a court order will increase the costs which you may have to pay for later. The law gives a bailiff the right to enter a residence to carry out his or her duties without a court order providing entry is not refused and force is not necessary. If a bailiff is authorized to use force, it must be reasonable force, most commonly, using a locksmith to gain entry through a locked door. Once a bailiff has gained lawful entry to a residence they are entitled to proceed with the instructions until completed, even if they are later asked to leave.

When appointed by the Sheriff, a bailiff is issued an Alberta Civil Enforcement Bailiff badge and a picture ID. A bailiff must produce the badge and ID for inspection when asked.

Yes, as defined in the Criminal Code of Canada, they are peace officers while carrying out their duties as a civil enforcement bailiff.

The role of the police is to preserve the peace. Unless otherwise stated in a Court Order, generally speaking, the assistance of the police should be to ensure that the civil enforcement bailiff is allowed to carry out his or her functions and duties in a peaceful manner without interference or threat of physical confrontation from the debtor or other persons on site.

If you owe someone money, its possible your vehicle was seized. Before reporting it as stolen, contact your local police and ask if they are aware of your vehicle being seized. This is because bailiffs are encouraged to advise the local police when theyve seized and removed a vehicle without the debtor or anyone on the debtors behalf being present.

If the person cant be located or isnt taking steps to retrieve their property, then you should consider talking to a lawyer about any legal requirements to follow before disposing of the property. Depending on your situation, you may be able to proceed under the Warehousemens Lien Act or the Possessory Liens Act, or if you are a landlord, you may be able to proceed under the Residential Tenancies Act.

You should contact a civil enforcement agency for information about seizing the tenants property to satisfy the rent owing.

A landlord cannot personally evict a tenant, or seize and remove a tenants property. Evictions and seizures of property can only be done by authorized civil enforcement agencies using appointed civil enforcement bailiffs. If your landlord threatens to evict you and/or have your property seized, you should try talking to your landlord and attempt to resolve whatever dispute there is between the parties. This can help you avoid the additional cost of an eviction or seizure. If that doesn't work, you may want to consider talking to a lawyer about your rights. You may also get more information from Service Alberta by phoning 780-427-4088 in Edmonton, or toll-free in Alberta 1-877-427-4088, or visiting their website at www.servicealberta.gov.ab.ca.

First, contact one of the authorized bailiff firms, called civil enforcement agencies. They are in the best position to be able to tell you whether there is a need for more bailiffs. Also, at least one of the agencies would have to hire you under a contract or some other form of employment before you could be appointed as a bailiff. The next step would be to complete the Civil Enforcement Bailiff training provided by a civil enforcement agency and achieve a mark of at least 80% on an open book written exam. There are other requirements to meet before the Sheriff could appoint you as a bailiff. Download the Civil Enforcement Bailiff Information and Application Form for more information.

Legal papers are documents filed in court proceedings. Normally these documents must be delivered, commonly referred to as served, on a party to the proceedings, in other words, an individual or a company.

 

 

In Alberta, anyone can personally hand deliver documents to a person to be served. The only exceptions to this are:

• In a divorce action, the person filing for divorce cannot serve the claim on their spouse.
• In criminal proceedings, there are certain documents that, under the Criminal Code, must be delivered by a Peace Officer, usually this would be a Police Officer.

There are many businesses that serve legal documents. They are commonly referred to as Process Servers and are listed in the Yellow Pages.

You may also contact the Office of the Sheriff - Civil Enforcement in Edmonton at (780) 422-2481 to request a province-wide listing of Process Servers.

The rules for serving legal documents may differ from province to province. For information on the rules affecting your situation, you should contact the local court office in the province where the person you are trying to serve lives, or contact a process server in Alberta which has offices in other provinces. Some process servers include this information in their advertising.

The Hague Conference of November 15, 1965, Convention #14, provides for the service abroad of court documents in civil or commercial matters. Countries that participate in this Convention have designated a Central Authority, who will receive and process requests for service.

 

Members of the Law Society of Alberta should deal directly with the appropriate Central Authority. Alberta residents may contact the Office of the Sheriff - Civil Enforcement for assistance.

For more information about the Hague Conference visit their website at www.hcch.net.

There are two ways that legal papers from another country may be served on a resident of Alberta:

 

1. The requesting party may contact a civil enforcement agency or process serving company directly; or
2. Under the Hague Convention, the Office of the Sheriff - Civil Enforcement may receive a request directly from the originating country's Central Authority, Consulate or Embassy, or a document service company. The requesting party must provide two identical sets of the documents to be served, an English translation of those documents, and a $50.00 service fee in Canadian funds. The Office of the Sheriff will then make arrangements with a Civil Enforcement Agency to serve the documents. When the agency completes the request, the Office of the Sheriff will return one or both sets of documents to the requesting party along with the appropriate Affidavit of Service or attempted service or completed Certificate.

For more information about the Hague Conference visit their website at www.hcch.net.