Colenutt v. Colenutt, 2023 ABKB 562 (CanLII): Tort Claims, Harassment, and Familial Violence in Alberta

Date: 2023

Court: Court of King’s Bench of Alberta

Citation: Colenutt v. Colenutt, 2023 ABKB 562 (CanLII)

The Alberta Court of King’s Bench’s decision in Colenutt v. Colenutt (2023 ABKB 562) addresses how Alberta’s tort law applies to allegations of ongoing harmful conduct within intimate relationships — including claims that could be characterized as harassment or coercive control. While the judgment does not recognize a novel tort of family violence or coercive control, it reaffirms that existing torts such as assault, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress remain the pathway for civil claims arising from harmful interpersonal conduct.

Background and Context

The parties in Colenutt were long-married spouses litigating divorce, property division, and related disputes. The wife brought tort claims linked to alleged patterns of harmful behaviour by the husband during the marriage She sought to amend her pleadings to assert new causes of action, including claims that were framed in terms of family violence.

At the time of her application to amend, courts in Ontario were grappling with the recognition of new torts such as family violence and coercive control — most notably in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia. However, by the time Colenutt was argued, the Ontario Court of Appeal had rejected these novel torts, holding that existing causes of action (e.g., assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress) sufficiently addressed similar harms, and that recognition of new torts should be a legislative, not a judicial, enterprise.

Key Legal Issues

1. Whether Alberta should recognize a new tort of family violence or coercive control

   
   

   The wife’s proposed amendments sought to expand tort liability beyond traditional causes of action to capture broader familial abuse patterns.

   
   

2. Application of existing tort law and limitation periods

   
   

   If new torts were not recognized, did the existing causes of action support the proposed allegations? Were any of the claims barred by limitation periods?

   
   

Court’s Analysis

The Court agreed with the Ontario Court of Appeal’s reasons in Ahluwalia and held that:

• There is no separate tort of family violence or coercive control in Alberta. Instead, litigants may rely on established tort causes of action (e.g., assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress) for harms arising from harmful conduct in intimate relationships.

• The decision did not automatically extinguish patterns of abusive behaviour from being actionable — but it did require that such behaviour be framed within established tort categories.

• The Court allowed amendments to pleadings where they raised actionable causes of action (e.g., sexual assault) that were not statute-barred, but concluded other tort allegations outside of the limitation period could not proceed.

• The matter was consolidated with related family proceedings where appropriate to promote judicial efficiency, but the tort claims remained distinct from the statutory family law actions. 

  
  

Colenutt reaffirmed that novel torts such as family violence are not yet recognized in Alberta, leaving the law to develop within established tort frameworks and newer causes of action such as harassment where applicable.

Practical Takeaways

• Existing torts remain the backbone of civil liability for harmful interpersonal conduct in Alberta; newly proposed torts must be carefully integrated into established jurisprudence or await legislative reform.

• Tort claims based on patterns of conduct can proceed if framed correctly (e.g., as assault, battery, or intentional infliction of emotional distress), but may face limitation period hurdles.

  
  

Conclusion

Colenutt v. Colenutt illustrates Alberta courts’ caution in recognizing new causes of action in tort law. While the novel concepts of family violence and coercive control were rejected as standalone torts, existing legal avenues — including the emerging tort of harassment — continue to offer remedies for victims of harmful conduct. Effective pleadings and timely claims remain critical when pursuing tort remedies in the context of intimate or familial disputes.

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