Family Justice Services


Scheduling of Special Family Law Chambers Applications

Court of Queen’s Bench “Family Law Practice Note #2”, eff. March 1, 2011 states, in part, that any family law chambers application that will take longer than 20 minutes (but less than 60 minutes) should be set down for hearing as a “special family law chambers" application. Booking an application must be done through the clerk's office, either in person or by telephone.
 
To book a 20-60 minute "special family law chambers" application to be heard in Edmonton, please call (780)638-3637 (a dedicated phone line to the Edmonton clerks' office). This is offered in Edmonton only, at the moment. All FLS applications are set for 2:00 pm. The weblink below, showing "FLS Available hearing dates" only pertains to booking a 20-60 minute application, and DOES NOT apply to applications outside the hearing length guidelines set out in Family Law Practice Note #2, eff. March 1, 2011. PLEASE NOTE: If your application will exceed 60 minutes, you can only book it through the Special Chambers Trial Coordinator at (780)422-2313.
 
To adjourn a 20-60 minute "family law special chambers" application that is scheduled to be heard in Edmonton, please call (780)643-1137 to speak with a Judicial clerk, who will ensure compliance with QB "Family Law Practice Note #2, eff. March 1, 2011".
 
The link further down this webpage opens a .pdf file that will display available hearing dates for the 20-60 minute “special family law chambers" applications being heard in Edmonton. PLEASE keep in mind the possibility that during July and August, the #3- and #4-scheduled matters may not proceed, depending on availability of Justices. Every effort is made to accommodate all matters but there are instances when it is not possible for all matters to proceed.  To view the .pdf file showing available hearing dates, you will require .pdf-reading software such as Adobe Reader or Foxit in order to view this document, and may download it for free at www.adobe.com or www.foxitsoftware.com  The preferred practice will be that counsel, counsel’s legal staff (or a self-represented applicant, if such is the case) will review the dates that are available for booking an application before calling the clerks’ office. Once you have decided on a date that you wish to book (or adjourn to), please call the clerks’ office to speak with court staff that can book a date for your application; if the clerk is busy with someone else, do not hang up. Your call will be taken in the order that it is received.
 
Counsel should be able to provide the clerk with the:
 
(a)            complete names of the parties;
(b)            your name, phone number and email address;
(c)            estimated length of time your application will take to present in court.
 
If you provide an email address at the time of booking your application, the clerk will promptly email you a document entitled “Deadlines Sheet”, which specifies filing deadline dates prescribed by paragraph 15 of “Family Law Practice Note #2, eff. March 1, 2011” for material that will be filed with the Court.
 
PLEASE NOTE: Once your application is booked on the FLS Calendar, you must file your application documents with the FLS clerks' office as soon as possible (but no later than deadline #1 shown in the "Deadlines Sheet" that will be emailed to you), in order to secure your application hearing date.
 

International Child Abduction

In cases of high conflict separation, a situation may arise where one parent effectively abducts the child from the other parent and then leaves the country with the child. The 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (the Hague Convention), which became law in Alberta on February 1, 1987, was designed to help the parents who have been left behind to locate and retrieve their children from the abducting parent in a foreign country. Applications to return a child located in Alberta to his or her home country are usually brought before the Court of Queen’s Bench, which has developed the following documents to assist parties in preparing return applications.