I Have a Family Problem and I Want to Resolve It out of Court
Alert: Extensive changes to family law in British Columbia came into effect on March 18, 2013. The changes include additional supports for people to settle their family law cases without having to go before a judge. JP Boyd on Family Law has extensive, updated coverage of Resolving Family Law Problems out of Court. |
There are many alternatives to going to court if you have a family law problem. Most family law problems are resolved out of court. However, legal advice or assistance is usually important to making fair agreements.
Families come to an agreement on their own, often through mediation or with the help of services available to help people resolve issues outside the courtroom. Mediation is an approach to solving problems in which a third party (a mediator) helps people with family law problems reach a resolution without going to court. A mediator is a person who is specially trained to help people resolve conflict.
Among the services available to help people resolve family issues without having to go to court are:
- Family justice counsellors: At Family Justice Centres, family justice counsellors are available to provide information, conduct mediations, and assist with writing separation agreements. Family justice counsellors can assist with family issues such as guardianship, parenting arrangements, contact and support. They cannot assist with getting a divorce order or division of property.
- Family advice lawyers: At some Family Justice Centres, the counsellors can refer you to family advice lawyers provided by the Legal Services Society for parents with low incomes. There is also initial legal advice provided by lawyers through Access Pro Bono and other organizations.
- Family LawLINE: If you are a person with a low income and a family law problem, you may be eligible for brief over-the-phone "next step" advice through the Family LawLINE about family law issues such as parenting, child and spousal support, property division, family agreements, and adoption.
- Family mediators: Most family mediators are professionals in private practice who assist couples in trying to resolve their family issues by agreement. Some family mediators are also family law lawyers. They almost always charge for their services.
- Collaborative family law: This approach involves the spouses and their lawyers signing an agreement that they will work together and make their best efforts to resolve their matter, and to create the best situation for their children, but that if one of them takes the matter to court, both lawyers must resign and the spouses must get new lawyers.
For help with challenges in caring for children, see "I am having challenges with my children and don't want the Ministry to remove them" in this Guide. |
First steps[edit]
- Decide if the situation you are facing is one that can be safely and fairly resolved without involving lawyers and the courts. If the other party has dominated, harassed or abused you or your children, or has denied you the parenting time that you are entitled to, it may be difficult to resolve your problems fairly without going to court. It is best to speak with a lawyer, advocate or family counsellor for advice on whether your problem is one that can probably be resolved out of court.
- To meet with a family justice counsellor, contact a Family Justice Centre and make an appointment to speak with a counsellor. Some Family Justice Centres have specialists in child support called child support officers. You can ask your family justice counsellor if a child support officer can be involved in your case.
- Call the Family LawLINE to see if you qualify for "next step" advice from a LawLINE lawyer (contact details are in the Resource List).
- To find a mediator in your area, look in the Yellow Pages or on the Mediate BC website (click on the "Directory of Family Mediators" link).
What happens next[edit]
If you meet with a family justice counsellor or a family mediator, they will discuss your options. They can contact your ex to see if he or she agrees to resolve your issues out of court. If so, the counsellor or mediator will communicate with both of you separately or together to help you reach an agreement. If it appears that you cannot resolve your matter outside of court, a family justice counsellor may assist you in preparing court documents or refer you to a lawyer on any legal matters. Family mediators may assist in drafting agreements, but are unlikely to assist you with other court documents.
The Family LawLINE can give you advice about how you can proceed with your case and may refer you to other services, but will not represent you in a mediation or in court. Family LawLINE services are provided through brief phone calls.
If you and your ex have resolved all the other issues between you, and you are only seeking a straightforward divorce, there are a number of publications to help you do this. (See below under "Where to get help".) However, if you and your ex are still discussing how to divide your property (house, money, vehicles, furniture, etc.), you should definitely speak with a lawyer. Division of family property is a complicated area of the law. |
Where to get help[edit]
See the Resource List in this Guide for a list of helpful resources. Your best bets are:
- Mediate BC.
- Family Justice Centres to make an appointment with a family justice counsellor to discuss guardianship, parenting time, contact with a child, or support, or to arrange a mediation.
- The Family Law in BC website, for forms, self-help materials and other legal information about family legal issues.
- The Clicklaw Wikibook JP Boyd on Family Law and in particular the chapter "Resolving Family Law Problems out of Court."
- The Clicklaw common questions "Our marriage is over; do we have to go to court?" and "How can mediation help me with a divorce agreement?".
Before talking with a family justice counsellor, mediator, or lawyer, complete the form Preparing for Your Interview included in this Guide. Make sure you have the dates of birth of your spouse and children, your date of marriage or cohabitation (if applicable), your date of separation, information about your income and property and those of your ex, and some notes on the issues that concern you.
This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by Stephen Wright, March 2017. |
Legal Help for British Columbians © Cliff Thorstenson and Courthouse Libraries BC is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Canada Licence. |