Blog Posts

Are gambling debts the responsibility of both spouses? Gambling debt can be a tricky issue in Family Law. Section 87 of BC’s Family Law Act, specifically sets out what is “family debt”. Under section 86, family debt is any financial obligation incurred by either spouse during the relationship as well as any debt incurred after […]

Top 3 Family Law Self Help Resources Navigating a divorce or a family separation can be confusing, expensive and time consuming. If you can’t afford to get help with your legal issue, the problem can be compounded. If you can’t afford a lawyer, you should first check whether you qualify for legal aid in BC […]

Excluded Property: The onus is on you – recent BCSC Decision While each spouse is generally entitled to equal division of family property under the Family Law Act property that spouses brought into the relationship is “excluded property”. Section 85 of the Act sets out what is “excluded property”. Inheritance, gifts from third parties, settlement […]

BC Court of Appeal confirms: unequal contributions not grounds to depart from presumption of equal division BC’s Family Law Act requires family property to be divided equally unless it would be “significantly unfair”. Does the fact that one spouse under contributed financially qualify as “significant unfairness”? British Columbia’s top court has confirmed in Khan v. […]

You Has your ex-spouse passed away after you started a family action? Are you unsure of whether you are entitled to an asset division following your spouse’s passing? Contact experienced Vancouver Family Lawyers to navigate the most unusual and complex set of facts. Facts In a recent decision, Surrett v. Butkiewicz, 2018 BCSC 2194, the […]

Did you obtain a court order for your ex to pay child support in British Columbia? Is your ex still finding ways to avoid child support payments? Does your ex owe you retroactive child support payments? Is your ex intentionally under-employed? Is your ex seeking to vary or terminate a child support order?   Facts […]

A recent decision, Venables v. Venables, 2018 BCSC 1736, explains how to divide family assets and debts following the breakdown of a relationship, where one party brought an excluded property into marriage and then shared said property ownership with his spouse. In this case the parties were married on August 1, 2009, and separated in […]

In a recent decision, Kong v. Song, 2018 BCSC 1691, the Supreme Court of British Columbia determined that the habitual residence of a 2.5-year old child was not in Canada, which meant that the father had wrongfully removed the child from China and brought him to Canada.   Facts The child, Lucas, was born on […]

The value of the Family Home is a contentious issue in family law because it is often the family’s largest major asset. When the Family Home is registered either spouses’s name, it is considered family property under the Family Law Act. When spouses separate, section 81 of the Family Law Act gives each has a right to a half […]

Overview Following a relationship breakdown you might be wondering whether you have a claim for an unequal division of family property. An order for an unequal division of family property or debt occurs when a 50/50 split of the family assets and debts would create unfair circumstances for one of the parties. These types of […]

To file for divorce is an important step the goodfirm Family Lawyers can help with. Affordable travel has made long distance relationships increasingly common. For couples who are legally married, the Divorce Act will apply no matter what province they file for divorce in. For common law couples, each province has different legislation in place for how […]

You A recent case McCarthy v. McCarthy, 2018 BCSC 1210, is a good reminder of how to determine whether a property transfer is excluded property or a family asset.  For example, imagine that you have been in a relationship with another person for a short period of time. Your mother then transfers property held in […]

The Vancouver housing market is out of reach for many millennial who increasingly rely on their parents to help finance their first home purchase. In Villeneuve v. Agnew, 2018 BCSC 546, Mr. Justice Verhoeven highlighted the risks that a parent faces when helping a child purchase their first house. In Villeneuve, an ex-girlfriend filed a family law claim […]

What do you do as an excluded spouse? In Unger v. Unger Estate 2017 BCSC 1946, a testator left the residue of his estate to his children and nothing for his second wife of 34 years on account of having already transferred her a half share in the family home. The wife sought to vary the deceased’s last […]

Recently a Vancouver judge made it  clear which antics he thought were too much in divorce court. We have blogged on this site before about the importance of legal advice and what to avoid when presenting the court with affidavit evidence here and here. In the recent case of Zandbergen v. Craig, Justice Smith was […]

Recently Vancouver family lawyers were reminded that not only parents but also step-parents may be responsible for supporting their step kids after divorce. In EZ v. PZ, 2017 BCSC 375, Justice Baird heard a case in which the mother and purported father were married at the time that the mother gave birth to a child […]

People always assume it is a good idea to put property or bank accounts in joint names with their spouses. They buy a house where they will live, and they put it in joint tenancy. They open a bank account so they can pay their bills, and they put it in joint names. Often, people […]

Spousal support orders are made on three bases: Compensatory. To compensate a spouse for their role in the relationship and sacrifices they made during the relationship for the betterment of the spouses’ lives. Non-Compensatory or Needs-Based. To ensure that one spouse does not suffer the consequences of sacrifices made during the relationship more than the […]

Since the introduction of the BC Family Law Act, the court has struggled with how a spouse may prove property is excluded. As explained in our blog Dividing Property in BC: The Proof is in the Puddin‘, the person who claims property is excluded has to show that it is excluded. The recent Court of Appeal […]

Mr. Justice Skolrood of the BC Supreme Court has ordered that  he can step in where necessary and require parents to sign a consent form for Nexus passes. In Pasco v. Pasco, 2016 BCSC 2484, the mother lived in White Rock and the father was unwilling to provide consent for her to travel cross-border for […]