A King’s Bench Protection Order is the longer-term protective order under Alberta’s Protection Against Family Violence Act. It is granted by a justice of the Court of King’s Bench, on application and normally on notice to the respondent, where the justice determines that the claimant has been the subject of family violence. Unlike an Emergency Protection Order, which is designed for the moment of crisis and lasts only until its review, a King’s Bench Protection Order can be made for up to one year and extended for further periods, and it can carry terms that an EPO cannot: reimbursement of losses caused by the violence, including legal expenses; temporary possession of a vehicle, bank cards, identification documents and children’s clothing; restrictions on dealing with property; a bond to secure compliance; and a direction that the respondent attend counselling.
For Calgary families, a King’s Bench Protection Order is often the order that follows an EPO review, granted when the justice revokes the emergency order and replaces it with something built for the months ahead. It is also available on its own, where family violence has occurred but the situation does not meet the immediacy an EPO requires, and it can be combined in the same proceeding with exclusive possession of the family home under the Family Property Act and with parenting orders under the Divorce Act or the Family Law Act. Applications under the Protection Against Family Violence Act sit outside the Court’s ordinary family application rules and outside the mandatory intake process, so they proceed on their own footing and on their own timeline.
Keystone Legal applies for King’s Bench Protection Orders, defends against them, and handles the applications that travel with them. On the claimant’s side, the work is evidence: a chronology of the violence, the documents and communications that prove it, and a draft order with terms that fit the family’s circumstances. On the respondent’s side, it is a specific answer to each allegation and a considered position on terms, because an order that is broader than the facts support will govern the respondent’s life for a year. In both cases, the firm appears at the Calgary Courts Centre and, where an order is granted, ensures it is served so that police can enforce it.
Clients across Calgary work with Keystone Legal on protection order matters through a confidential virtual process, in English or French, with in-person meetings arranged where needed. The firm accepts these matters where they proceed through the Calgary Courts Centre. Call (587) 328-3328 to speak with the firm about a King’s Bench Protection Order.
