High Level Descriptions Added to Alberta Legislation

What does it all mean? Many people are asking themselves that on this day after the US general election.

If your personal ‘what does it all mean’ relates to the laws of Alberta (and why wouldn’t it) there is a new tool to assist you with an answer. The Alberta Queen’s Printer is now providing ‘high level descriptions’ to provide context to search and browse results for legislative information.

Wondering what the Judicature Act is all about? The description offers:

This act provides for the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal of Alberta and the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta, and the powers that each Court and its judges can exercise. It also outlines the functions of the Judicial Council, judicial compensation commissions, and the Rules of Court Committee.

Curious about the Justice Statutes Amendment Act, 2014 ? Not only are the unproclaimed sections excerpted for easy reference, the helpful description offers:

This act amends section 95 of the Wills and Succession Act. Unproclaimed.

On a gloomy day in the markets, the promise of a long cold winter, and a dawn of increased global uncertainty, at very least legal research innovation continues. Check it out at the public Laws Online/Catalogue at the Alberta QP website.

Comments

  1. For anyone looking for similar information in Manitoba, at the moment I believe the best strategy is to go back and look at the originating Bill. For instance, if you wanted a brief statement of what The Aboriginal Languages Recognition Act (http://web2.gov.mb.ca/laws/statutes/ccsm/a001-5e.php) is all about, you just need to find the page for the original bill (http://web2.gov.mb.ca/bills/39-4/b024e.php) and scroll down to the Explanatory Note (http://web2.gov.mb.ca/bills/39-4/b024e.php#Explanatory Note). This can be particularly useful for larger bills that amend multiple statutes. This information is currently available online going back to 1999.