An Emergency Protection Order arrives without warning. A police officer serves it, and from that moment the person named in it is usually out of the home, barred from contacting their spouse or partner, and often barred from contacting their children, on the strength of an application they did not know had been made. The order is granted under Alberta’s Protection Against Family Violence Act by a justice of the Alberta Court of Justice or a justice of the peace, without notice to the respondent, where the justice determines that family violence has occurred, that the claimant has reason to believe it will continue or resume, and that the seriousness or urgency of the situation calls for immediate protection. The Act is built that way on purpose: it is meant to provide an immediate period of safety first and to test the order second. The test comes quickly.
The nine working days
Every EPO must state the date, time and place of its review at a hearing before a justice of the Court of King’s Bench, and that review may not be later than nine working days after the order was granted. For Calgary-area families, the review takes place at the Calgary Courts Centre. The justice or justice of the peace who granted the order must forward everything that was before them, including their notes, to the Court of King’s Bench, and at the review the justice must consider all of that evidence and may allow additional evidence to be presented. The review goes ahead whether or not the claimant or the respondent attends.
What the justice can do
The Act gives the reviewing justice four options. The justice may revoke the order. The justice may direct that an oral hearing be held, at which evidence is given in person. The justice may confirm the order, in which case it becomes an order of the Court of King’s Bench. Or the justice may revoke the emergency order and grant a King’s Bench Protection Order in its place, which is the longer-term order under the Act and can carry terms an EPO cannot, including reimbursement of the claimant’s losses, temporary possession of specific property, restrictions on dealing with property, a bond and counselling. A protection order under the Act may not exceed one year unless the Court later extends it, for further periods of up to one year each.
How to prepare
The review is the respondent’s first opportunity to be heard, and for many respondents it is the only opportunity that matters, because the order confirmed or replaced at the review will govern their home and their contact with their children for months. Preparation means a sworn response that deals with each allegation specifically rather than in general denial, evidence of the real history between the parties, the parenting arrangements that need to be preserved for the children, and a position on what terms would be appropriate if some order is to continue. It also means obtaining the material that was before the justice of the peace, because that is what the reviewing justice starts from. All of this has to be done inside the nine working days, which is a short time to gather documents and swear an affidavit.
Obey the order in the meantime
Until the review, the order must be followed exactly. A term prohibiting contact prohibits contact by any means, including through friends or relatives, unless the order expressly says otherwise. A person who has notice of a protection order and breaches it commits an offence; a first offence carries a fine of up to $5,000, imprisonment for up to 90 days, or both, and a police officer may arrest without a warrant. A breach in the days before the review is also the worst possible evidence to bring into the hearing. Keystone Legal represents respondents at EPO review hearings at the Calgary Courts Centre and, on the other side, advises claimants preparing for the same hearing. If you have been served, call (587) 328-3328 the day you receive the order.
This article is general information about Alberta law and is not legal advice. Every situation is different, and you should speak with a lawyer about yours.
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