Surcharge Grandfathering Ends June 30, 2024
Surcharge Grandfathering Ends June 30, 2024
As set out in the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol, grandfathering of claims that occurred prior to July 1, 2019, expires on June 30, 2024.
ALIA launched the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol in July 2019 to shift more of the costs of multiple paid claims onto the relatively few lawyers who incur them. Under the previous protocol, lawyers who had multiple paid claims for damages would face surcharges to a maximum of three times that year’s annual base levy. The Enhanced Surcharge Protocol uses a fixed amount that escalates with the number of paid claims for damages, without a cap.
For the first five years of the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol, ALIA allowed those whose only claim(s) occurred prior July 1, 2019, to remain under the old protocol. The addition of any new paid claim on or after that date automatically pushed all claims into the new surcharge structure for the next Policy Year.
Any claim(s) that have been grandfathered under the previous Surcharge Protocol will become subject to the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol, effective with the 2024-2025 Policy Year starting on July 1, 2024. Any applicable surcharge will be included on the upcoming levy invoice.
Who does this affect?
Lawyers who had a claim that was reported prior to July 1, 2019, which resulted in a paid claim but who have not yet paid an annual surcharge on it for five full Policy Years.
Impact: Any remaining surcharges will be paid at the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol rates, the first of which shall occur with the 2024-2025 indemnity levy payment due June 30, 2024.
Your surcharge will be based on the outstanding paid claims you have when the 2024-2025 levy invoices are calculated in May 2024.
Previous surcharge structure compared to Enhanced Surcharge Protocol
More information on ALIA’s Enhanced Surcharge Protocol can be found below:
If you have any questions regarding surcharges, please contact Customer Service by email or call 403-229-4716 during ALIA’s business hours.
The summary of the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol contained above, the FAQ, and any infographic or flowchart or any other linked information is provided for information purposes only and not as legal advice and is qualified in its entirety to the terms and conditions of the Enhanced Surcharge Protocol.