Category: Family Law

In this blog post, I will discuss the payment of basic child support in a primary care scenario. ‍Basic child support refers the payment of child support excluding any amounts that are considered Section 7 Special or Extraordinary Expenses…

On April 28, 2016, the British Columbia Court of Appeal provided guidance as how to treat “excluded property” that is gifted between spouses. To frame the question in practical terms: If spouse #1, who owns excluded property, gifts that property to the spouse #2, can spouse #1 still claim the exclusion? With the release of…

How are oral agreements considered for Division of Property purposes? This blog post will consider the role of oral agreements pertaining to division of property only. Oral agreements pertaining to spousal support, parenting arrangements, or child support may me addressed in further blog posts. This question was considered in the case of Thomson v. Young,…

The short answer appears to be "no". If the spouses were married, then either spouse may apply for spousal support under the Divorce Act. It appears that even if a previous order or agreement provides that spousal support is "dismissed" or providesthat spousal support is payable at $0.00 per month, a spouse may still apply…

What happens if the character of “excluded” property has changed? For example, what happens if sale proceeds from a sale of a house that a spouse owned prior to the start of the spousal relationship are put towards the purchase of a new house purchased during the relationship that would otherwise be considered family property?…

Primer on the issue of bankruptcy in a family law case. Discussion of Triggering date; family relations act; family law act; bankruptcy and insolvency act; trustee in bankruptcy; financial restraining orders.

The court considered the question of reapportioning the increase in value of a company in the case of Kuhlberg v. Hall, 2015 BCSC 2230 (CanLII).

In the case of Shih v. Shih, 2015 BCSC 2108, the Court opts to follow the approach as set out in Remmem and P.G. and declines to follow the case of Wells and V.J.F.

Section 85 (1) of the Family Law Act provides what is excluded family property. Section 85 (2) of the Family Law Act provides that A spouse claiming that property is excluded property is responsible for demonstrating that the property is excluded property. The case of Shih v. Shih, 2015 BCSC 2108 (CanLII) provides guidance as…

The method in which the court treats corporate interests / business interests in family law is complex. Generally speaking, a corporation is treated as its own separate entity and has its own legal identity. This means, practically speaking, the corporation is its own person.