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Difference between revisions of "Family Relationships"
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The institution of marriage was once of such social significance that people could be sued for attempting to interfere with a married couple's relationship. Until 1972, it was a civil offence to falsely boast that you were married to someone (called ''jactitation of marriage'') or to lure a spouse away from a married relationship (called ''criminal conversation''), and a court proceeding could be brought against someone for loss of the benefits of marriage (called ''loss of consortium''). | The institution of marriage was once of such social significance that people could be sued for attempting to interfere with a married couple's relationship. Until 1972, it was a civil offence to falsely boast that you were married to someone (called ''jactitation of marriage'') or to lure a spouse away from a married relationship (called ''criminal conversation''), and a court proceeding could be brought against someone for loss of the benefits of marriage (called ''loss of consortium''). | ||
All of these old rules are now extinguished in British Columbia and married couples are no longer considered to be a single legal person, with the husband having sovereign rights over his wife and her property. Since 1978, married women have had exactly the same property rights that single women have, which also happen to be the same property rights that their husbands have. A husband can no longer apply for credit in his wife's name or use her property as collateral for a loan without her express permission. On top of this, the old rules restricting marriage to opposite-sex couples have now been abolished, first by the courts and then as a result of the federal ''Civil Marriage Act''. | All of these old rules are now extinguished in British Columbia and married couples are no longer considered to be a single legal person, with the husband having sovereign rights over his wife and her property. Since 1978, married women have had exactly the same property rights that single women have, which also happen to be the same property rights that their husbands have. A husband can no longer apply for credit in his wife's name or use her property as collateral for a loan without her express permission. On top of this, the old rules restricting marriage to opposite-sex couples have now been abolished, first by the courts and then as a result of the federal ''[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-31.5/index.html Civil Marriage Act]''. | ||
If there's a difference between married and unmarried spousal relationships (apart from the religious dimensions), it's probably that marriage often implies a greater sense of personal commitment to the relationship and a willingness to treat the relationship as a true partnership. Marriage suggests something more permanent than an unmarried relationship. It signals a personal dedication to nurturing the relationship and a willingness to stick it out through the good times and the bad. | If there's a difference between married and unmarried spousal relationships (apart from the religious dimensions), it's probably that marriage often implies a greater sense of personal commitment to the relationship and a willingness to treat the relationship as a true partnership. Marriage suggests something more permanent than an unmarried relationship. It signals a personal dedication to nurturing the relationship and a willingness to stick it out through the good times and the bad. | ||