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Difference between revisions of "Marriage (3:III)"

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=== 1. General ===
=== 1. General ===


Common law spouses have certain rights/obligations conferred on them by various statutes and the common law. Each statute may give a slightly different definition of a common law “spouse”. A general rule is that for most federal legislation it takes one year of living together in a “marriage-like relationship” to qualify as common law and for most provincial legislation it takes two years to qualify (See ''Takacs v. Gallo'' (1998), 157 D.L.R. (4th) 623 for a summary of the indicators to be considered when determining whether parties have lived in a  “marriage-like  relationship”; see ''Matteucci v Greenberg'', 2014 BCSC 1434; ''Trudeau v Panter'', 2013 BCSC 706 that merely living together does not mean a relationship is marriage-like). Under the ''FLA'', a person will be considered a ‘spouse’ if they have lived in a marriage-like relationship and have a child together (for spousal support only), or if they have lived in a marriage-like relationship for a continuous period of 2 years (see ''CAM. v MDQ'', 2014 BCPC 110 regarding the child exception to living together for two years). This period begins when the couple began to live together in a marriage-like relationship. Someone separating within two years of ''FLA'' coming into force is a spouse (''Meservy v Field'', 2013 BCSC 2378). See [[Family Law Glossary (3:App A) | Section XV: Glossary]] at the end of this chapter for a brief list of definitions. For more extensive definitions, consult the current legislation. Remember that a common law relationship is not a legal marriage. Nevertheless, where legal rights and obligations are conferred on common law spouses, the relationship is still valid even if one or both of the parties is currently married to someone else.
Common law spouses have certain rights/obligations conferred on them by various statutes and the common law. Each statute may give a slightly different definition of a common law “spouse”. A general rule is that for most federal legislation it takes one year of living together in a “marriage-like relationship” to qualify as common law and for most provincial legislation it takes two years to qualify (See ''Takacs v. Gallo'' (1998), 157 D.L.R. (4th) 623 for a summary of the indicators to be considered when determining whether parties have lived in a  “marriage-like  relationship”; see ''Matteucci v Greenberg'', 2014 BCSC 1434; ''Trudeau v Panter'', 2013 BCSC 706 that merely living together does not mean a relationship is marriage-like). Under the ''FLA'', a person will be considered a ‘spouse’ if they have lived in a marriage-like relationship and have a child together (for spousal support only), or if they have lived in a marriage-like relationship for a continuous period of 2 years (see ''CAM. v MDQ'', 2014 BCPC 110 regarding the child exception to living together for two years). This period begins when the couple began to live together in a marriage-like relationship. Someone separating within two years of ''FLA'' coming into force is a spouse (''Meservy v Field'', 2013 BCSC 2378). See [[Family Law Glossary (3:App A) | Appendix A: Glossary]] at the end of this chapter for a brief list of definitions. For more extensive definitions, consult the current legislation. Remember that a common law relationship is not a legal marriage. Nevertheless, where legal rights and obligations are conferred on common law spouses, the relationship is still valid even if one or both of the parties is currently married to someone else.