Reminder: Signing Authority Requests
If you are a Responsible Lawyer and need to have another lawyer at a different firm approve withdrawals from your trust account temporarily, you must submit a signing authority request to the Trust Safety Department (Rule 119.27(3) of the Rules of the Law Society of Alberta). Once granted, the approval must be recorded in paper or digital form and maintained with the monthly reconciliation of your law firm’s trust accounts.
Transferring signing authority temporarily to another lawyer can be a good way to plan ahead for any extended absences. Only active lawyers employed at another firm who are in good standing with the Law Society can be granted temporary signing authority approval. Non-lawyer staff cannot be granted signing authority. Active lawyers employed at the same firm (including secondary Responsible Lawyers) do not require approval from Trust Safety.
How to Submit a Request
To request signing authority approval, email Trust Safety with the following information:
- Your full name and firm name.
- The full name(s) of the lawyer(s) who you would like to have signing authority.
- The dates you would like to have them granted the signing authority. We can grant up to six months at a time before you must request a renewal.
Please note that requests can take up to two weeks to be approved, so contact us as early as possible. If you have an emergency request, please call Trust Safety directly at 403.228.5632 and we will try to expedite the request.
Once the temporary signing authority has expired, it is up to you as the Responsible Lawyer to ensure that the other lawyer no longer has access to your trust account(s).
Contact Trust Safety if you have any further questions.