Family Justice Centres

A BC government service, Family Justice Centres have family justice counsellors who can provide information and assistance with family-related legal issues such as parenting arrangements, contact, guardianship, child and spousal support and no-contact orders. They cannot assist with strictly Supreme Court issues such as divorce or property division. Centres in Nanaimo, Victoria, Vancouver, Kamloops, Kelowna, New Westminster, Prince George, and Surrey provide legal advice through family advice lawyers. Abbotsford, Nanaimo, Surrey, Victoria, and Vancouver locations also offer expanded self-help services through the Justice Access Centres.

Website gov.bc.ca Phone 1-800-663-7867 (EnquiryBC, ask the operator to transfer you) Find on Clicklaw Family Justice Centres on Clicklaw HelpMap

In law, to formally deliver documents to a person in a manner that complies with the rules of court. Service may be ordinary (mailed or delivered to a litigant's address for service), personal (hand-delivered to a person), or substituted (performed in a way other than the rules normally require). See "address for delivery," "ordinary service," "personal service" and "substituted service."

A judge of the superior courts of British Columbia, being the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.

A term under the Family Law Act which describes the arrangements for parental responsibilities and parenting time among guardians, made in an order or agreement. "Parenting arrangements" does not include contact. See "contact," "guardian," "parental responsibilities" and "parenting time."

Under the Family Law Act, a term that describes the time a person who is not a guardian of a child, including a parent who is not a guardian, has with that child. Under the Divorce Act, a term that describes the time a person who is not a married spouse has with a child. See "guardian" and "parental responsibilities."

A person who is younger than the legal age of majority, 19 in British Columbia. See "age of majority."

A payment made by one spouse to the other spouse to help with the recipient's day-to-day living expenses or to compensate the recipient for the financial choices the spouses made during the relationship.

Normally referred to as the "Supreme Court of British Columbia," this court hears most of the trials in this province. The Supreme Court is a court of inherent jurisdiction and has no limits on the sorts of claims it can hear or on the sorts of orders it can make. Decisions of the Provincial Court are appealed to the Supreme Court; decisions of the Supreme Court are appealed to the Court of Appeal. See "Court of Appeal," "jurisdiction," "Provincial Court" and "Supreme Court of Canada."

The legal termination of a valid marriage by an order of a judge; the ending of a marital relationship and the conjugal obligations of each spouse to the other. See "conjugal rights," "marriage" and "marriage, validity of."

Something which can be owned. See "chattels" and "real property."

In contract law, the expression, either orally or in writing, of a willingness to be bound by a proposed agreement, contract, or settlement. See "offer to settle."