Section 7 Expenses

Section 7 of the Federal Child Support Guidelines (Guidelines) specifically addresses those “special or extraordinary expenses” which the basic monthly child support or table amount does not include. Section 7 outlines the categories of special or extraordinary expenses which include: child care expenses incurred as a result of the custodial parent’s employment, illness, disability or […]

3 Things Every Parenting Plan Should Have

A parenting plan is a useful document all separated spouses should have as part of their parenting arrangement. These plans outline parents’ respective rights and the extent of their involvement with their children. They are more than mere time-splitting schedules; parenting plans are a contract between parents about childrearing and provide consistent structure in kids’ […]

Travel Consent

What is a Travel Consent? Travel consent applies to a child who is either traveling alone, with only one parent/guardian, friends, relatives or a group (e.g. sports, school, musical, religious). Although there is no Canadian legal requirement for children to carry a travel consent, a travel consent may be requested by immigration authorities when a […]

Child Support

Child support refers to a child’s right to be financially supported by the non-custodial parent. This financial support is generally paid on a monthly basis. The amount of child support a payor parent is obligated to pay is often referred to as the ‘table amount’ as this number is derived from a table of calculations set out in the Federal […]

Misconception of Sole Custody

The Meaning of Sole Custody To get to the misconceptions of sole custody it is important to outline its meaning. Sole custody outlines how decisions are made for the child and who can make them. It does not outline the physical care or the amount of time spent with the child. Sole custody is also […]

What are the Child Support Guidelines?

The Federal Child Support Guidelines contain an easy to use table for each province and territory to determine how much child support needs to be paid from one parent to the other. The set-formula: The table uses a set formula which considers: The number of children that child support should be paid for, and The […]

Dispute Resolution Officers

Dispute Resolution Officers (“DRO’s”) are experienced family law lawyers in all areas of family law who has been carefully selected by the court to meet the parties and assist them in settling their matter. The DRO will not only speak with parties and their counsel, but also suggesting different mechanisms for resolution which will satisfy […]

Benefits of the Collaborative Process

Collaborative Family Law is also known as the CFL process. It focuses on an interest-based negotiation method and is a voluntary process. The parties resolve their disputes respectfully, with the assistance and guidance from their lawyers (and other professionals if necessary) to achieve a settlement that meets the specific needs of all parties involved. One […]

Collaborative Law

Collaborative Family Law is also known as the CFL process and is a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution that focuses on interest-based negotiation. The CFL process requires the voluntary participation and willingness of both parties to work through the legal issues civilly and amicably. In the CFL process, parties resolve their disputes respectfully, with the assistance […]

Property Division

The division of assets and property can be complicated and confusing. Furthermore, married spouses have different property rights under the law than common-law spouses. Married couples are entitled to a legislated property division regime, known as “Equalization”, which is set out in the Family Law Act. The equalization process begins with each spouse calculating their respective “net family property” […]