Overwhelming Rejection of No-Fault Auto Insurance at UCP AGM

EDMONTON, AB, Dec. 1, 2025 /CNW/ - The Alberta Civil Trial Lawyers Association (ACTLA), representing more than 350 lawyers and law firms across Alberta, commends delegates at the United Conservative Party's Annual General Meeting for their decisive stand in defence of Albertans' fundamental rights.

This weekend, an overwhelming majority of UCP members and delegates sent an unmistakable message: Albertans will not accept the Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance's attempt to advance a no-fault auto insurance regime, rebranded as Care First.

ACTLA states that the following realities are crystal clear:

1. Care First is simply no-fault auto insurance by another name.
   
   
2. The right to seek justice through the courts is a fundamental civil right that Albertans demand be protected.
   
   
3. Albertans emphatically reject WCB- or David Eby-style insurance systems.
   
   
4. The proposed 'Criminal Code exemption' is a cruel and unacceptable barrier to justice that purports to preserve the right to sue while effectively eliminating it.5. Accountability and personal responsibility remain core values for Albertans.

ACTLA Chair Jillian Gamez stated: "It is telling for a governing party to see a flagship policy so resoundingly repudiated by its own membership. This reflects a significant lack of confidence in the direction charted by the Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance.

She continued: "Albertans understand that rights only reveal their true value when exercised. Those rights are priceless--certainly more so than the phantom savings the Government and insurers admit may or may not materialize."

ACTLA has consistently supported the Government's goal of affordable and sustainable auto insurance. What we cannot support--and what UCP members themselves just repudiated in overwhelming fashion--is the Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance's plan to erase the fundamental rights of seriously injured Albertans.

We call on Premier Smith to intervene personally and direct officials to drop the no-fault approach immediately.

ACTLA and its members stand ready to work constructively with the Government and the insurance industry to craft real, made-in-Alberta solutions that deliver lower rates for drivers while preserving justice for innocent crash victims.

Albertans deserve nothing less.

ACTLA (1986) is dedicated to advancing jurisprudence, improving the adversary system and trial by jury, promoting the administration of justice, and advocating for the public good. www.actla.com

To learn more about this policy – www.fairab.ca

SOURCE Alberta Civil Trial Lawyers Association

Media Contact: Erin Stroud, Executive Director ACTLA