How is Family Law Equalization Calculated in Ontario?

In Ontario, one of the most complex parts of a divorce involves the division of property. Equalization payments are designed to allow spouses to keep their personal property and split joint financial assets evenly. While this may seem like a simple fifty-fifty proposition, family law equalization calculations, when not performed properly and legally, can leave one spouse at a significant...

Start Your New Life with a Post-Divorce Bucket List

There’s no arguing that the majority of divorces are unhappy events. Rare is the divorce that’s completely mutual and pain-free. Due to the traumatic nature of the dissolution of marriage, it’s always advisable to try to salvage your relationship if you’re not experiencing emotional or physical abuse from your partner. However, when divorce is the option that makes the most sense, it’s...

The Difference Between Canadian and US Divorce Laws

Divorce law in Canada and the United States is similar in terms of the dissolution of marriage and the division of wealth and child custody. How the law is enforced, however, differs greatly. Canada has a federal divorce act while the United States leaves the specifics up to each individual state. Canadian provinces can make only small changes in family law to suit jurisdictional...

Are You Avoiding Divorce Because Your Family “Stays Together?”

Staying together for the sake of the kids is a noble idea. Divorce is never a pleasant situation, and your kids will have to deal with the dissolution of your marriage in spite of your best efforts to shield them from it. Depending on the circumstances, it may indeed be a good idea to remain married. Unfortunately, if the relationship can’t be healed, then staying together for the kids could...

Will Divorce Make Your Ex a Better Parent

Parenting after divorce can be one of the most difficult aspects of splitting from your spouse. Depending on the circumstances, co-parenting may force you to deal with complications that place obstacles between children and parents. In other cases, when couples divorce, one or both partners may end up becoming better parents because they no longer pour energy into fighting to save the...

Can a Divorce Lawyer Make My Ex Pay Child Support?

Whether the answer to this question is “yes” or “no” depends on the role you expect your divorce lawyer to take in the pursuit of child support. While a divorce lawyer cannot be the one to directly make your ex pay child support, they can be instrumental in establishing required payments. What can a divorce lawyer do to secure child support? Your divorce lawyer can...

Lessons to Learn From Other People’s Divorce

Whether they’re good or bad, our experiences can teach us a lot. Luckily, we don’t have to have already gone through something to learn from it. Other people’s advice and discoveries are often available to us, even more so now that we have the internet and can reach out to each other across the globe. Here are some lessons that several divorced people say they learned from...

Are Common Law Relationships Pushing the Divorce Rate Down?

It’s likely that they are. To understand how, let’s look at some of the facts around common-law relationships. How common is common law? According to the CBC, as of the 2011 census, 11% of Canadian women were living with a common-law partner. And people of all ages are changing the way they approach relationships. Historica reports that “Today, first unions are more likely...

A Bad Marriage is More Stressful Than a Bad Job

While both these issues are serious and can impact both your psychological and physical health, the distress caused by a bad marriage is ultimately worse. A job is important in terms of our social status and finances; marriage affects these areas and our overall sense of emotional security. Emotional and Physical Harm A bad job can create stress in other areas of your life, but a bad marriage...

Small Arguments That Can Cost Divorcees Big Money

Do you know what’s likely to cost you BIG in a divorce? While big assets like your home or cottage are obvious focus points for discussion, and lawyer’s fees and child support could be big costs, the small stuff can add up—especially when the situation becomes emotional. Here are a few seemingly small arguments that could end up costing you a lot in the long run. Spite could cost...