Matrimonial Property Act, SA 1978, c 22 (now RSA 2000, c M-8), enacting a combination of the majority and minority proposals for the distribution of matrimonial property, and an extension of the recommendations on possession of the matrimonial home.

This report addresses small defects in the law and parts of this report that deal with Affidavits of Execution and illegible signature of notaries, the Builders’ Lien Act, and Seizures Act are really miniature working papers. Recommendations are made regarding the Bulk Sales Act, Alberta Evidence Act, Dower Act, Liquor Control Act and Workers’ Compensation Act. Matters still under consideration are Affidavits of Execution: illegible signature of notaries, commissioners, etc.; Arbitration Act; sections of the Builders’ Lien Act; Proceedings Against the Crown Act; Real Estate Agents’ Licensing Act; Seizures Act; Statute of Frauds; and Survival of Actions (especially the claim for loss of expectation of life). Matters that have been included in existing major projects include common law spouses, the Judicature Act and the Divorce Act; Limitations of Actions; and sections of the Land Titles Act. Submissions on which no action is planned include Alberta government’s Telephones Act, Change of Name Act, Criminal Code (s. 306), Examination for Discovery, Gas Utilities Act, Health Insurance Premiums Act, Planning Act, Public Works Act, and the Surrogate Courts Act and Administration of Estates Act.

Regarding the Bulk Sales Act, it is recommended that section 5 be amended so that the vendors statement shall contain a list of the trade creditors; that section 6 and the form of waiver be amended so that the waiver provision applies to unsecured trade creditors instead of to all creditors. The report also recommends that the Alberta Evidence Act section 19(1) be amended so that it permits a person to affirm when he objects as a result of conscientious scruples, religious belief, or because the oath does not bind his conscious. For the Dower Act it is recommended that the affidavits, that require the owner to swear that neither he nor his spouse has resided on the lands, be amended to conform to section 2, which provides that dower attaches only to the property on which a married owner resides. Section 110 of the Liquor Control Act should be amended to refer to the renumbered section of the Criminal Code.

The Attorney General Statutes Amendment Act, 1976, S.A. 1976, c. 57, s. 1 amending the Alberta Evidence Act (now R.S.A. 2000, c. A-18, s. 26).