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Difference between revisions of "Separation and the Law"
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Under the old ''[[Family Relations Act]]'', married spouses rarely argued about when they separated. The issue was sometimes important for unmarried spouses because their ability to ask for spousal support depended on whether they started a court proceeding within one year of the date of separation. | Under the old ''[[Family Relations Act]]'', married spouses rarely argued about when they separated. The issue was sometimes important for unmarried spouses because their ability to ask for spousal support depended on whether they started a court proceeding within one year of the date of separation. | ||
Under the new ''[[Family Law Act]]'', the date of separation has become very important for both married and unmarried spouses. | Under the new ''[[Family Law Act]]'', the date of separation has become very important for both married and unmarried spouses. | ||
*each spouse | In general, the date of separation will have the following effects: | ||
*the spouses | |||
*the | *each spouse becomes enttiled to a half-interest in all family property, whether that property is owned jointly or in the name of the other spouse only; | ||
* | *the spouses each become responsible (as between the spouses) for one half of family debts; | ||
*any property either spouse obtains after the date of separation is his or her own separate property, and not family property; | |||
*any debt either spouse incurs after the date of separation is that spouse's sole responsibility; | |||
*unmarried (ie. common-law) spouses have two years past the ''date of separation'' to start a claim in court for division of family property, spousal support, or sharing of family debts, if they cannot otherwise agree; | |||
*married spouses have two years from the date of their ''divorce'' to bring claims in court for division of family property, spousal support, or division of debts. | |||
The [[Property_%26_Debt_in_Family_Law_Matters|Property & Debt]] chapter talks about the first four issues in more detail; the [[Spousal Support]] chapter talks about the last issue. | The [[Property_%26_Debt_in_Family_Law_Matters|Property & Debt]] chapter talks about the first four issues in more detail; the [[Spousal Support]] chapter talks about the last issue. | ||
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===Desertion=== | ===Desertion=== | ||
This | This ground for divorce has been abolished. | ||
Instead, s. 8(1)(2)(a) of the ''Divorce Act (Canada)'' allows either spouse to apply for a divorce on the ground that the spouses have been living separate and apart for at least a year, and that there is no chance of reconciliation. | |||
===Separation and children=== | ===Separation and children=== | ||
Under s. 39(1) of the | Under s. 39(1) of the ''Family Law Act'', a parent is a guardian of his or her child both while the parents live together and remain guardians even after the parents separate. | ||
Separation can be extraordinarily difficult on children. In most registries of the Provincial Court, couples are required to attend a Parenting After Separation program. This program, which is <span class="noglossary">brief</span> and free, teaches parents how to communicate with one another after separation and how to talk to their children about separation. It is an extremely useful program, and one which I encourage all separating parents to take. You can find more information about this program and other issues relating to children and separation in the [[Children in Family Law Matters|Children]] chapter, in the section [[Parenting After Separation]]. | Separation can be extraordinarily difficult on children. In most registries of the Provincial Court, couples are required to attend a Parenting After Separation program. This program, which is <span class="noglossary">brief</span> and free, teaches parents how to communicate with one another after separation and how to talk to their children about separation. It is an extremely useful program, and one which I encourage all separating parents to take. You can find more information about this program and other issues relating to children and separation in the [[Children in Family Law Matters|Children]] chapter, in the section [[Parenting After Separation]]. | ||
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* [http://clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/1640 Legal Services Society’s Family Law Website: Separation] | * [http://clicklaw.bc.ca/resource/1640 Legal Services Society’s Family Law Website: Separation] | ||
{{REVIEWED | reviewer = [[Vanessa Van Sickle]], | {{REVIEWED | reviewer = [[Vanessa Van Sickle]], May 15, 2016}} | ||
{{JP Boyd on Family Law Navbox|type=chapters}} | {{JP Boyd on Family Law Navbox|type=chapters}} | ||
