The Act sets adulthood at 18 and tells readers to treat many references to age 21 as age 18, subject to stated exceptions.
AGE OF MAJORITY ACT Chapter A‑6 Table of Contents 1 Age of majority 2 Application 3 Meaning of words 4 Reference to 21 in existing Acts 5 Application of age change to federal statutes 6 Modification of court orders and directions 7 Effect on existing wills 8 Exemption re existing statutory provisions 9 Accumulations not affected 10 Perpetuities not affected 11 Right of action and defence preserved 12 Limitation of action HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, enacts as follows: Age of majority 1 Every person attains the age of majority and ceases to be a minor on attaining the age of 18 years. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s1 Application 2 Section 1 applies for the purpose of any rule of law in respect of which the Legislature has jurisdiction. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s2 Meaning of words 3 (1) In the absence of a definition or of an indication of a contrary intention, section 1 applies to the construction of “adult”, “full age”, “lawful age”, “infant”, “infancy”, “minor”, “minority” and similar expressions in (a) an Act of the Legislature or regulation, rule, order or bylaw made under an Act of the Legislature enacted or made before, on or after July 1, 1971, and (b) a deed, will or other instrument made on or after July 1, 1971. (2) The use of any expression set out in subsection (1) or any similar expression shall not, in itself, be taken to indicate a contrary intention for the purposes of this section without some further indication of a contrary intention. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s3 Reference to 21 in existing Acts 4 (1) In an Act of the Legislature or a regulation, rule, order or bylaw made under an Act of the Legislature enacted or made before July 1, 1971, a reference to the age of 21 years shall be read as a reference to the age of 18 years. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to this Act. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s4 Application of age change to federal statutes 5 Where by an Act of the Legislature, an Act of Parliament or a provision of either of them is made to apply in respect of any act or matter or thing over which the Legislature has jurisdiction, then in applying that Act of Parliament or that provision in respect of that act or matter or thing, a reference to the age of 21 years in the Act of Parliament or the provision shall be read as a reference to the age of 18 years. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s5 Modification of court orders and directions 6 (1) In any order or direction of a court made before July 1, 1971, in the absence of an indication of a contrary intention, a reference to the age of 21 years or to any age between 18 and 21 years or to any of the expressions referred to in section 3(1) and any similar expression shall be read as a reference to the age of 18 years. (2) The use of “21 years” in an order or direction referred to in subsection (1) shall not, in itself, be taken to indicate a contrary intention for the purposes of this section without some further indication of a contrary intention. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s6 Effect on existing wills 7 Notwithstanding any rule of law, a will or codicil executed before July 1, 1971 shall not be treated for the purposes of this Act as made on or after that date by reason only that the will or codicil is confirmed by a codicil executed on or after that date. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s7 Exemption re existing statutory provisions 8 This Act does not affect the construction of a provision of an Act of the Legislature or a regulation, rule, order or bylaw made under the Act that is incorporated in and has effect as part of a deed, will or other instrument if the construction of the deed, will or other instrument is not affected by section 3. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s8 Accumulations not affected 9 This Act does not invalidate a direction for accumulation expressed in a settlement or other disposition made by deed, will or other instrument and executed before July 1, 1971 that, but for this Act, was a permissible period of accumulation. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s9 Perpetuities not affected 10 This Act does not apply so as to affect the law relating to perpetuities. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s10 Right of action and defence preserved 11 This Act does not prejudice a right of action or a defence to an action based on the age of a party and that was in existence on July 1, 1971 and, notwithstanding this Act, the law that was in force on June 30, 1971 applies in that case. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s11 Limitation of action 12 If, on July 1, 1971, a person had (a) attained the age of 18 years but had not attained the age of 21 years, and (b) a right of action in respect of which the period of limitation applicable to the bringing of the action would have commenced to run on the person attaining the age of 21 years had this Act not been enacted, the period of limitation in respect of that right of action commences to run on July 1, 1971. RSA 1980 cA‑4 s12