Assurance Fund

The Law Society of Alberta maintains the assurance fund to compensate clients for misappropriation or wrongful use of trust funds by their lawyer. The loss must meet the criteria outlined in the Legal Profession Act. (link)

The assurance department receives and investigates claims for compensation and brings each claim before the executive director. The executive director will decide:

• payment of a claim,
• dismissal of a claim, or
• referral to a panel of the LSA Finance committee for further review. 

If the claim is approved, the assurance fund will compensate the initial amount of the loss.

More information about assurance fund claims can be found in the Assurance Fund Guidelines. The Application for Compensation is available for download, or by contacting the Executive Insurance Assistant.

Custodianships

A custodian is an Alberta lawyer who is appointed by the court to protect the interests of the client while finalizing a lawyer’s practice. A formal custodian may be appointed to a lawyer’s practice following:

• disciplinary penalty (suspension or disbarment),
• an interim suspension,
• suspension in conjunction with an LSA investigation, or
• the death or disability of a lawyer (in some cases).

The custodianship department supervises the appointment, administration and discharge of a formal custodianship.

The custodianship department also oversees informal custodial arrangements when requested by a lawyer. In those cases the court does not appoint the custodian.

For more information about informal custodial requirements, contact the Administrator, Custodianships.

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