Alberta Court Decision Addresses Drop Dead Rule, Chronic Delays In Civil Litigation

The Court of Appeal of Alberta (Court) recently addressed the issue of chronic delay in civil litigation, when it released a split decision in Ursa Ventures Ltd. v. Edmonton (City) (Ursa) on the interpretation of rule 4.33 in the Alberta Rules of Court. Rule 4.33 directs the dismissal of civil proceedings where a significant advance in an action has not occurred for three or more years. Often referred to as the "drop dead" or "dismissal for long delay" rule, it states that "[i]f 3 or more years pass without a significant advance in an action," and a party applies to have the action dismissed, the court must dismiss the action. The Court's ruling in Ursa offers new insight into what constitutes a "significant advance."