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Category: Property Page 24 of 34

The proof of the pudding: ALSA and the Draft Lower Athabasca Regional Plan

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On April 15, 2011

In Environmental, Property, Protection of Spaces

PDF version: The proof of the pudding: ALSA and the Draft Lower Athabasca Regional Plan

Documents commented on: Draft Lower Athabasca Regional Plan 2011 – 2021, Strategic Plan and Implementation Plan; Proposed Lower Athabasca Integrated Regional Plan Regulations

On April 5, 2011 the Government of Alberta (GOA) moved a step further to implementing the Alberta Land Stewardship Act, SA 2009, c.A-26.8 (ALSA) when it released a draft version of the Lower Athabasca Regional Plan (LARP) for public consultation. ALSA has been much in the news in Alberta over the last few months and the legislation has been embroiled in debates over property rights leading the GOA to introduce a Bill (Bill 10) to amend ALSA to, inter alia, clarify the relationship between regional plans and property rights. I have commented on that debate (see here) and on Bill 10 (see here).

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Tracing Original Property to Replacement Property: What Evidence is Required?

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On March 11, 2011

In Family, Property

PDF version: Tracing Original Property to Replacement Property: What Evidence is Required? 

Case considered: Scheffelmeier v. Krassman, 2011 ABCA 64

In Scheffelmeier v. Krassman the Alberta Court of Appeal once again dealt with tracing exempt property under the Matrimonial Property Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. M-8 (MPA). Tracing is one of the more contentious matters in matrimonial property litigation, as is the matter of non-disclosure of financial information, also a factor in this case. Scheffelmeier is of interest because it includes a dissenting opinion on the application of the long-standing principle that “[t]racing can be inferred, implied, or presumed” (Harrower v. Harrower (1989), 97 A.R. 141; 21 R.F.L. (3d) 369 at 376 (C.A.)). The point of contention between the majority opinion of Mr. Justice Ronald L. Berger and Madam Justice Patricia Rowbotham and the dissenting opinion of Mr. Justice J.D. Bruce McDonald also illustrates the problem caused by the lack of enforcement mechanisms for the disclosure requirements in the MPA.

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Regulatory chill, weak regional plans, and lots of jobs for lawyers: the proposed amendments to the Alberta Land Stewardship Act

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On March 4, 2011

In Environmental, Property, Protection of Spaces

PDF version: Regulatory chill, weak regional plans, and lots of jobs for lawyers: the proposed amendments to the Alberta Land Stewardship Act 

Legislation commented on: Bill 10, the Alberta Land Stewardship Amendment Act, 2011

In an earlier blog, I commented on one aspect of the on-going debate in Alberta on the Alberta Land Stewardship Act, SA 2009, c.A-26.8 (ALSA). On March 1, 2011 the government introduced Bill 10, the Alberta Land Stewardship Amendment Act, 2011. The Bill contains 12 pages of amendments to the Act. I think that the Bill will encourage the adoption of timid plans that will not achieve the noble purpose of the legislation. I also think that the amendments will create significant uncertainty and encourage litigation. The big winners from this Bill will be lawyers; the environment will be the loser. And if the environment loses then we all lose; whether we happen to be landowners or not.

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ALSA and the property rights debate in Alberta: a certificate of title to land is not a “statutory consent”

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On February 11, 2011

In Environmental, Property, Protection of Spaces

PDF version: ALSA and the property rights debate in Alberta: a certificate of title to land is not a “statutory consent” 

Statute commented on: Alberta Land Stewardship Act, SA 2009, c.A-26.8

There is significant public debate in Alberta about a series of measures introduced and passed by the provincial government over the last 18 months. These measures include: (1) the Land Assembly Project Area Act (sometimes known as Bill 19, now SA 2009, c. L-2.5, yet to be proclaimed), (2) the Electric Statutes Amendment Act, SA 2009, c.44 (Bill 50), (3) the Alberta Land Stewardship Act, SA 2009, c.A-26.8 (ALSA), and (4) Bill 24, the Carbon Capture and Storage Statutes Amendment Act (Alberta), SA 2010, c.14. I won’t deal with all aspects of the debate but I do want to comment on one aspect of the debate as it relates to ALSA.

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The Right of a Landlord to Withhold Consent to the Sub-leasing of Residential Premises

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On November 30, 2010

In Landlord/Tenant, Property

By: Jonnette Watson Hamilton

PDF Version: The Right of a Landlord to Withhold Consent to the Sub-leasing of Residential Premises

Case Commented On: Botar v Mainstreet Equity Corp., 2010 ABQB 710

It is unusual for a residential tenancy matter to be heard in the Court of Queens’ Bench of Alberta, as was Botar v. Mainstreet Equity Corp. Residential landlord and tenant law is intended to be accessible; the relationship is regulated by one, fairly comprehensible and comprehensive statute, the Residential Tenancies Act, S.A. 2004, c. R-17.1. Claims under that statute are usually heard in Provincial Court – Civil (also known as Small Claims Court), and that court has a helpful website on the Residential Tenancies Process. Accessible explanations of the process involved in making claims under the Residential Tenancies Act are an indication that Provincial Court – Civil is oriented toward self-represented litigants. Nevertheless, a tenant such as Andrew S. Botar might choose to represent himself in the Court of Queen’s Bench or be required to do so because his claim is for more than $25,000, the upper limit on damages that Provincial Court – Civil can award. In this case, Mr. Botar’s claim was for approximately $75,000. Mr. Botar had also enjoyed some success in the Court of Queen’s Bench against his landlord, Mainstreet, in 2007: see Botar v. Mainstreet Equity Corp., 2007 ABQB 608 and A Tenant’s Right to Withhold Payment of Rent, my comment on that earlier decision. Any preference Mr. Botar might have for the Court of Queen’s Bench, however, might be dissipated by this November 2010 decision by Mr. Justice J.J. Gill.

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