Regular Family Chambers

Filing for chambers is a formal court application. The justice will review the filed paperwork and hear what the parties have to say. After hearing from both sides, the justice will make a decision. The hearing takes less than 20 minutes.

The justice cannot give the parties legal advice because justices make decisions based on the evidence everyone has provided. You may have to pay legal costs if your application is unsuccessful, so get legal advice before making an application.

You may be able to resolve your situation without going to court. You could try an Alternative Dispute Resolution process like:

• talking to the other party to reach an agreement
• coming to mediation with the other party and discussing the problem with a professional who can help you resolve the issue
• attending a Child Support Resolution Program appointment if your application deals with child support in Edmonton or Calgary

For more options, see Dispute resolution for families.

Alternative Dispute Resolution involves both parties in the decision and is often cheaper and faster than going to court.

Practice Notes are guidelines for specific court procedures. Family Law Practice Note 2 is the Practice Note for chambers applications. Reviewing this note will help you understand specific directions including:

• when to file for Regular Chambers and when to file for Special Chambers
• if the court can deal with your type of application in Regular Chambers
• the appropriate applications documents, including page limits

You will need to find the person (respondent) you are naming in your claim and notify them of your application. They need to get all your paperwork so they can file a response before the court date. If you cannot locate the respondent, see Serving a notice in a court application or contact Resolution Services.

Review the Regular Family and Civil Chambers schedule to view available court dates.

You must give the respondent between 5 and 40 days notice of the court date, depending on the type of application. If the respondent does not have enough notice, the justice may refuse to hear your application. The clerk at the chambers office can help you pick a court date.

When setting your court date, allow enough time for the respondent to get your documents. After you have picked a court date, make sure it is on all copies of your application.

Use the following forms to make an application under the Divorce Act:

• Family Application – Form FL-18
  • This form shows the court date and explains the application’s purpose.
  • The clerk will confirm the court date when you file the application.
  • There is a $50 filing fee unless you qualify for a fee waiver.
• Affidavit – Form 49
  • This form explains the reasons for your application and can include attached evidence (or “exhibits”).
  • An affidavit must meet the following requirements:
    • 8.5 by 11 inch paper
    • 1 inch margins
    • 12 point font
    • Times New Roman or similar font
    • 1.5 line spacing
    • single sided
    • if handwritten, must be easy to read
    • no more than 8 pages – exhibits not included
    • the body of the affidavit refers to attachments as "Exhibit 1, Exhibit 2, etc."
    • there are less than 40 pages of attached exhibits
    • numbering for attached exhibits starts at 1
    • there is a Table of Exhibits which lists the attached exhibits, a short description and the exhibit’s page number
    • you must sign and swear or affirm the form in front of a Commissioner for Oaths (free at Resolution Services, Court of King's Bench office)

Use the following forms to make an application if you have an existing proceeding on a Family Law Act file:

• Family Application – Form FL-18
  • This form shows the court date and explains the application’s purpose.
  • The clerk will confirm the court date when you file the application.
  • There is a $50 filing fee unless you qualify for a fee waiver.
• Affidavit – Form 49
  • This form explains the reasons for your application and can include attached evidence (or “exhibits”).
  • An affidavit must meet the following requirements:
    • 8.5 by 11 inch paper
    • 1 inch margins
    • 12 point font
    • Times New Roman or similar font
    • 1.5 line spacing
    • single sided
    • if handwritten, must be easy to read
    • no more than 8 pages – exhibits not included
    • the body of the affidavit refers to attachments as "Exhibit 1, Exhibit 2, etc."
    • there are less than 40 pages of attached exhibits
    • numbering for attached exhibits starts at 1
    • there is a Table of Exhibits which lists the attached exhibits, a short description and the exhibit’s page number
      you must sign and swear or affirm the form in front of a Commissioner for Oaths (free at Resolution Services, Court of King's Bench office)

Use the following forms to make an application under the Family Law Act where there is no existing proceeding:

• Claim: Family Law Act – Form FL-10
  • This form shows the court date and explains the application’s purpose.
  • The clerk will confirm the court date when you file the application.
  • There is a $50 filing fee unless you qualify for a fee waiver.

• Choice 1: Affidavit – Form 49
  • This form explains the reasons for your application and can include attached evidence (or “exhibits”).
  • An affidavit must meet the following requirements:
    • 8.5 by 11 inch paper
    • 1 inch margins
    • 12 point font
    • Times New Roman or similar font
    • 1.5 line spacing
    • single sided
    • if handwritten, must be easy to read
    • no more than 8 pages – exhibits not included
    • the body of the affidavit refers to attachments as "Exhibit 1, Exhibit 2, etc."
    • there are less than 40 pages of attached exhibits
    • numbering for attached exhibits starts at 1
    • there is a Table of Exhibits which lists the attached exhibits, a short description and the exhibit’s page number
    • you must sign and swear or affirm the form in front of a Commissioner for Oaths (free at Resolution Services, Court of King's Bench office)
• Choice 2: Statements – Forms FL-34 to 56
  • These statement forms explain the reasons for the claim and can include attached evidence (or “attachments”).
  • Instructions:
    • The body of each statement has no more than 4 extra pages, if required.
    • The body of the statement refers to attachments as "Attachment 1, Attachment 2, etc."
    • There are less than 40 pages of attachments.
    • Numbering for attachments starts at 1.
    • There is a Table of Attachments which lists the attachments, a short description and the attachment’s page number.
    • You must sign and swear or affirm the statement in front of a Commissioner for Oaths (free at Resolution Services, Court of King's Bench office).

You must give copies of your filed application/claim and affidavit/statement to the respondent. You or another adult must personally deliver the documents. You cannot leave the documents with anyone except the respondent.

Process servers

You can hire a process server to serve the respondent for you. Process servers can find the respondent, serve the documents and complete the Affidavit of Service. They will charge a fee for their services.

If you cannot find the respondent

If you cannot find the respondent, or if they are outside of Canada, contact Resolution Services or the Court of King's Bench.

After the respondent gets your documents, you will need to fill out an Affidavit of Service.

• General Affidavit of Service
• Affidavit of Service (only use if you have filed a Claim FL-10 form)

An Affidavit of Service confirms that the respondent received your documents. The server (the person who delivered the documents) should complete the form. An Affidavit of Service includes:

• a list of the documents you delivered
• the date you delivered the documents
• the complete address of where you served the respondent

The server needs to sign the form and swear/affirm it in front of a Commissioner for Oaths.

In some locations duty counsel is available. Duty counsel is a lawyer who assists the court and both parties. If you want their help, speak to them before court starts. Check with your current location on how to contact duty counsel on the day of your court hearing. Duty counsel will:

• speak to the parties
• explain the issues to the court
• suggest Alternative Dispute Resolution to resolve the dispute

Etiquette

• Expect to be in the courtroom for at least 2 hours.
• Sit in the gallery area of the courtroom.
• All conversation in the courtroom is recorded, so it is best to have any discussions outside.
• Once the justice comes in, you should not talk.

Process

• When your name is called, go to the front of the courtroom.
• The applicant/claimant speaks first and explains the reason for the appearance.
• You can tell the justice what you want (for example, “I am asking to increase my child support”) and explain the facts in your affidavit/statement.
• The respondent will get the chance to explain their position (for example, “I don’t want to increase the child support”). The respondent will then explain the facts in their affidavit/reply statement.
• The justice may ask the parties questions. At this point, the parties should not make any other arguments.

Occasionally the justice will “reserve” their decision for a later date, which means they will not decide right away. The justice will contact the parties once they have made a decision. You may have another court date to hear the justice’s decision in-person, or you may receive a decision in writing.

If you are self-represented, the justice may direct the court to create and process their order. The court would create a Court Generated Order based on the Clerk's Notes and the audio recording from the hearing. The justice then reviews and signs the order. You would get a filed copy of the order by email or mail.

If you have a lawyer, the justice might tell them to write up the order, get it filed and give it to all the parties.