2,665
edits
Difference between revisions of "Divorce Act"
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
no edit summary
Brenda Rose (talk | contribs) m |
|||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
[http://canlii.ca/t/7vbw | The ''[http://canlii.ca/t/7vbw Divorce Act]'', RSC 1985, c 3 (2nd Supp) is a federal law that you can find, along with other federal laws, at the website of the federal Department of Justice, or on [http://canlii.ca/t/7vbw CanLII], a free website for searching Canadian court decisions and legislation. Because of a constitutional rule called the ''doctrine of paramountcy'', the ''Divorce Act'' is considered to be superior to the provincial ''Family Law Act''. As a result, if you are entitled to ask for an order under the ''Divorce Act'' about child support or spousal support, you probably should. | ||
The Divorce Act only applies to ''married spouses'', people who are or were married to each other by a marriage commissioner or a religious official licenced to perform marriages. If you are not legally married, the ''Family Law Act'' is the only game in town. Although the court may allow someone who isn't a spouse to apply under the Divorce Act for an order relating to custody of or access to a child, that person must get the court's permission first, and the spouses must have already started a court proceeding between each other. | The ''Divorce Act'' only applies to ''married spouses'', people who are or were married to each other by a marriage commissioner or a religious official licenced to perform marriages. If you are not legally married, the ''Family Law Act'' is the only game in town. Although the court may allow someone who isn't a spouse to apply under the ''Divorce Act'' for an order relating to custody of or access to a child, that person must get the court's permission first, and the spouses must have already started a court proceeding between each other. | ||
You must also be ''ordinarily resident'' in your province for at least one year before you can ask for an order under the Divorce Act. This means that you might have to delay filing for a divorce if you've moved to a new province within the last year. | You must also be ''ordinarily resident'' in your province for at least one year before you can ask for an order under the ''Divorce Act''. This means that you might have to delay filing for a divorce if you've moved to a new province within the last year. | ||
The Divorce Act refers to children as ''children of the marriage''. A child of the marriage is defined in s. 2(1) as: | The Divorce Act refers to children as ''children of the marriage''. A child of the marriage is defined in s. 2(1) as: | ||
| Line 11: | Line 11: | ||
<blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) is the age of majority or over and under their charge but unable, by reason of illness, disability or other <span class="noglossary">cause</span>, to withdraw from their charge or to obtain the necessaries of life.</tt></blockquote></blockquote> | <blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) is the age of majority or over and under their charge but unable, by reason of illness, disability or other <span class="noglossary">cause</span>, to withdraw from their charge or to obtain the necessaries of life.</tt></blockquote></blockquote> | ||
In other words, a child of the marriage is someone who is less than 19 years old, the age of majority in | In other words, a child of the marriage is someone who is less than 19 years old, the age of majority in British Coloumbia, or who is 19 and older if the child cannot support him- or herself. Since only people qualifying as ''spouses'' are obliged to pay child support, the definition of child of the marriage is expanded in s. 2(2) in include stepparents: | ||
<blockquote><tt>For the purposes of the definition “child of the marriage” in subsection (1), a child of two spouses or former spouses includes</tt></blockquote> | <blockquote><tt>For the purposes of the definition “child of the marriage” in subsection (1), a child of two spouses or former spouses includes</tt></blockquote> | ||
| Line 17: | Line 17: | ||
<blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) any child of whom one is the parent and for whom the other stands in the place of a parent</tt></blockquote></blockquote> | <blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) any child of whom one is the parent and for whom the other stands in the place of a parent</tt></blockquote></blockquote> | ||
The Divorce Act covers these basic subjects: | The ''Divorce Act'' covers these basic subjects: | ||
#divorce; | #divorce; | ||