Blog Posts

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 […]

In BC, the Family Law Act and Wills, Estates and Succession Act define the term spouse by reference to the term “separation”. Under WESA, section 2 provides that spouses cease to be spouses as follows: If they are married, on separation as it is considered under the FLA; or If they are living in a common […]

Divorce or separation is a very stressful time BC couples’ lives. In most cases, it’s the most stressful thing you’ll ever have to deal with. In times of such excess stress, you or your ex might reach for the bottle. The question is: In divorce or separation proceedings in BC when does drinking (yours or […]

This is a cautionary tale respecting the importance of independent legal advice. On January 13, 2017, Mr. Justice Grauer of the BC Supreme Court ordered  a husband to pay his ex-wife  spousal support despite finding that the parties had entered two “agreements”. He found that first the wife  agreed to a reduction from $8,000 to $4,000, […]

Deciding whether to get a divorce can be stressful. It is often the most stressful time in your life. How will you pay your bills? What will you get in the divorce? What about the kids? Where will you live? What does your new life look like? All of these questions are often floating around […]

Since March 2013, BC divorce lawyers dividing family property have been wrapping their heads around new legislation that was meant to be simpler, more intuitive and “better fit with people’s expectations of what is fair”(See the White Paper on Family Relations Reform Act) than the previous law. In theory, the new Family Law Act is […]

Court costs are often awarded by a court after a trial or application to whichever party was successful. Their purpose is in part to stop parties from bringing claims that have no chance of success and they may be used to hedge poor behaviour by parties during litigation. Another purpose of court costs is that […]

If you are not married and your claim for spousal support is pursuant to the BC Family Law Act, you must apply within one year of separation. If you are married and your claim for spousal support is pursuant to the Divorce Act, there is no time limit to apply for spousal support. This issue […]

Last year, the Associated Press released a three-part series on which jobs are being lost to new technology. Their research found that nearly all of the disappearing jobs are not low-paid, low-skilled positions, but rather reasonably-paid, traditionally middle-class professions including lawyers, loan officer and more. While jobless recovery and new technological advancements pose a more immediate […]

Coming into force on March 2013, the Family Law Act, SBC 2011 c 25 (“FLA”) dramatically changed the family law landscape in British Columbia. In addition to reducing the amount of judicial resources spent determining family property and debt under the former act, the goal of the new legislation is to make the law simpler, […]

Divorce and relationship breakdown is hard on everyone involved. While it is hard on the spouses, it is especially difficult on any children involved. People often do and say things that they are not proud of when their lives are in turmoil. Just one of the reasons that divorce is especially difficult for parents (and […]

  On June 14, 2016, Justice Pearlman of the BC Supreme Court released a decision on the issue of special costs in Dyer v. Dyer, 2016 BCSC 1115. The issue was whether Mr. Dyer was entitled to recover special costs against Mrs. Dyer after she brought an application to have the firm McLachlan Brown Anderson disqualified […]

In the recent case of MAV v. EKM, 2016 BCSC 594, John M. Richter appeared on behalf of father, MAV. In that case, MAV was applying for increased parenting time of his three boys. Since the date of separation in August 2015, the children had been primarily staying with the mother in the parties’ former […]

What the BC Wills Variation Act Was Designed to Do The BC Wills Variation Act protected spouses and children from unfair disinheritance. Although the Act has been replaced by WESA, many people still search using the old name, which is why it remains important for public understanding. The purpose of the Act was simple: to […]