Solicitor-client costs are a rare remedy in litigation. They are, in essence, a financial punishment for egregious conduct on the part of one of the parties that can be described as “reprehensible, scandalous or outrageous” (Walsh v Mobil Oil […]
Many people enter marriage without a full understanding of the rights and responsibilities it affords. One of the little-discussed rights that comes along with marriage, at least for people residing in Alberta, are dower rights.
Not to be confused […]
It is quite common for adult children to receive financial contributions from parents as they embark on adulthood. Sometimes these generous financial contributions continue from parents even after their adult children have families of their own. In family law disputes, […]
What happens when your adult child starts receiving AISH payments? Are you still obligated to make child support payments? In Werenka v Werenka, 2021 ABQB 789, the parties had been separated for 12 years and were parents to two […]
Living common-law with a long-term partner, as opposed to getting legally married, is becoming more prevalent amongst Canadian couples.
This raises the question of when it is appropriate to create a cohabitation agreement with your partner.
A cohabitation […]
Rates of family violence are steadily increasing within Canada. The newly amended Divorce Act, which came into force on March 1st, 2021 has attempted to mitigate issues of family violence facing Canadians during a divorce.
In the newly amended Divorce […]
There are many reasons why spouses may choose to proceed with a “do-it-yourself” separation or divorce. One of the most cited reasons is the potentially high cost that can come with retaining a lawyer. However, in the case of separation […]
The Canadian family law meets individuals and families at the most vulnerable times in their lives, including when one parent is incarcerated. This begs the question, if there is an existing child support order, and the payor parent or spouse […]
In the recent decision of Prykhodko v Anderson, 2021 ABQB 192, the Honourable Justice Gates considered the definition of an adult interdependent partner in the context of a maintenance and support application.
Justice Gates set out the relevant […]
Krebs v Cote, 2021 ONCA 467, a new case out of the Ontario Court of Appeal, sheds some light on the status of a cohabitation agreement after a couple separates and then reconciles and then separates once more.
In this […]