Board of Directors Nominations FAQs

The CBA Alberta Board of Directors has 13 members:

• 5 executive members: Secretary, Treasurer, Vice-President, President, Past President
• 8 directors:
  • 2 designated geographical members - 1 each from North Alberta (outside Edmonton) and South Alberta (outside Calgary)
  • 2 designated young lawyer members - 1 each from North Alberta and South Alberta
  • 4 Directors at Large

The Board of Directors is empowered to “manage and supervise the management of the activities and affairs of CBA Alberta and oversee the implementation of the policies and operations of CBA Alberta.”

Board members must be members in good standing of the CBA, not bankrupt, and residents of Alberta.

• Former members of the executive committee and directors of the CBA National Board must wait 2 years before they are eligible to run
• Members cannot run for both the Office of Secretary and the Board at the same time
• Terms are 2-year staggered terms, renewable for one term only (i.e., 4 years maximum) 
• Board members must wait one year before running for Secretary of the Branch

The Board has identified six vision elements for the next five years (2022 - 2026):

• Powerful advocacy
• Adaptive and innovative practice
• Committed membership
• Healthy culture within the profession
• Wellness in practice
• High-performance board leadership

Board members are expected to be available and attend the following meetings and events:

• Annual Board Retreat and Orientation: Oct/ Nov 2024 (offsite)
• 3 Board meetings: TBD
• Annual General Meeting: TBD
• Alberta Lawyer Insight Series: TBD

*It is anticipated that all the above meetings will be full-day commitments, with the exception of the annual retreat meeting and orientation which will be 2 days, usually a Friday and Saturday.

Travel is involved between North and South (generally Calgary and Edmonton and possibly other communities as well). Official Board travel is reimbursed in accordance with the Branch Travel Expense Policy.

Board materials are sent at least one week in advance to provide members with an opportunity to review and prepare for deliberations.

Board members may choose to deepen their engagement by serving as liaisons to the various CBA Alberta committees, or on other Board-created task forces or working groups.  On occasion, a Board member may be asked to officially represent CBA at some event.

In 2024, CBA Alberta is recruiting for 2 Director at Large positions, 1 South Young Lawyer position and 1 North Lawyer (outside Edmonton) position. Candidates who meet the criteria for the designated positions are also eligible for the director at large positions.

• The call for nominations will run from April 1 – 26, 2024 (see cba-alberta.org/Election for nomination packages)

• Every nomination must be signed by 3 voting members of the Branch and must be returned by the close of nominations at NOON on April 26, 2024

• An election if required will be held from May 1 – 22, 2024. At the commencement of the voting period, the Voters (all eligible voting members of the Branch, namely Active Regular and Scholar members holding membership for year 2023 - 2024 and Honorary members who have paid the fees by end of day April 30, 2024) will be electronically sent biographical information on each of the candidates, along with the link to their ballots and the date to return their completed ballot

• Election is a “first past the post” system with provisions to ensure that the “designated” Director positions are filled first

For more information, please consult the Bylaws of CBA Alberta