Following a lengthy application process, a Lacombe resident is the newest judge of the Court of Queen's Bench in Edmonton.

Gaylene Kendell, formally Gaylene Bobb, was a partner for about 10 years at Chapman Riebeek LLP in Red Deer, and she is replacing Madame Justice R. Kullar, effective April 12th.

With 90% of her cases dealing with family law, Kendell says she never considered a judgeship until a few years ago when she took note of how current judges in Alberta handled cases involving children.

“The manner in which some of our amazing judges have handled these very sensitive and emotional issues, with a real focus on promoting what’s best for the children was really inspiring to me in practice, and so I wanted to give back to my community in a similar way."

Strongly committed to better serving the public, Kendell hopes to assist Albertans getting access to justice in a more timely fashion. 

"It is important for people, and particularly for families with children, to have their legal issues addressed at the earliest possible convenience, to minimize the financial and social consequences of protracted litigation, and to allow them to move forward with their lives with certainty. I’m just hoping that having one more body here will assist in addressing that concern.”

Kendell was born and raised in Edmonton, but has lived in Lacombe since 2008, and she will now split her time between the two places.

She served on the board of Loaves and Fishes, was a member of the Red Deer Regional Legal Aid Committee, volunteered with the Central Alberta Community Legal Clinic, and was also on the boards of the Central Alberta Women's Outreach Society and the Suicide Prevention Society of Red Deer.

Her position became official on April 12th, and she was ceremonially sworn in last Thursday (June 28) in Red Deer.

The Canadian Government has committed $77.2 million over four years to support the expansion of unified family courts, creating 39 new judicial positons in Alberta, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador.

(Photo courtesy of Gaylene Kendell)