Law Links

Creditor-Debtor Law, Insolvency and Bankruptcy

Alberta Law Reform Institute
In 2004, the Institute published Final Report No. 91, Exemption of Future Income Plans. Its major proposal was that all registered retirement savings plans, deferred profit-sharing plans and registered retirement income funds, and obligations to pay money from such plans, should be completely exempt from all prejudgment and postjudgment creditors' remedies. The more complex problem of the exemption of such plans after the death of the depositor was dealt with in Final Report No. 92, Exemption of Future Income Plans on Death. Both reports were forwarded to the government of Alberta but have not yet been acted on.

The Institute is also nearing the end of its major review of the Alberta Rules of Court. The latest version is on the Institute's website. The current prediction is that the Institute will complete the last of its new draft Rules of Court by July, 2007, although I doubt whether the new Rules will become law before 2008 or 2009.
www.law.ualberta.ca/alri/

Uniform Law Conference of Canada
The Uniform Law Conference of Canada has several projects on creditor-debtor law. I highlight three, all of which can be found on the ULCC website.

1. In 1999, the ULCC approved a uniform statute on the exemption of future income plans from creditors' remedies. The title of the proposed act is the Uniform Registered Plan (Retirement Income) Exemption Act. It has been passed in Saskatchewan. See also the 1998 Proceedings for a report on the subject. On the Saskatchewan Act, see C.R.B. Dunlop, "Should Creditors Have Access to Future Income Savings Plans?" (2003) 66 Saskatchewan Law Review 279.
   
   
2. In 2004, the ULCC considered the Report of the Civil Enforcement Working Group proposing an all-encompassing uniform statute dealing with the enforcement of money judgments. The Conference later approved a uniform statute: the Civil Enforcement of Money Judgments Act. Both are on the website.
   
   
3. I gave a paper to the 2004 ULCC meeting on the need for reform of the law of fraudulent conveyances and preferences in Canada. At its 2006 annual meeting, the ULCC established a working group to prepare a paper on the subject for consideration at its 2007 meeting. The next step will probably be the drafting of a uniform statute.
   
   http://www.ulcc.ca/