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With the ever increasing cost of litigation and the time it takes to have a civil dispute determined at trial, the judicial system in Alberta has developed a dispute resolution system to provide a means of permitting disputing parties access to a preliminary judicial opinion. At any time following the close of the pleadings (delivery of statement of defence or reply and joinder of issue), the parties can request an attendance before a Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench. The parties (in the presence of their respective lawyers) will meet with the Justice and talk in an open forum. The Justice will often outline the strengths and weakness of each party's case and will canvass the possibilities of settlement. It should be noted that this is not mediation but simply a means to to provide early access to the courts with the aim of getting the parties headed toward resolution of their dispute. It also gives the parties a good indication as to what the outcome of a trial would be prior to going through the expense.