JP Boyd on Family Law

A new home for the popular family law help website from BC lawyer JP Boyd. This Clicklaw wikibook is written in plain language, with handy pop-up definitions for legal words and phrases, and covers pretty much everything there is to know about family law and divorceThe legal termination of a valid marriage by an order of the court, ending the marital relationship and the conjugal obligations of each spouse toward the other. law in British Columbia.

Read about the transition of this resource to a wiki format, timed to coincide with the introduction of the new Family Law Act on March 18, 2013.

Contents

Getting Started

• Definitions
• Legislation
• Family Law Basics
• Family Law Act Basics
• Divorce Act Basics

Chapters

• The Legal System
• Resolving Problems in Court
• Resolving Problems out of Court
• Family Law Agreements
• Children
• Child Support
• Spousal Support
• Property & Debt
• Family Relationships
• Separation & Divorce
• Protecting People
• Other Family Law Issues

How Do I?

• Get married in British Columbia?
• Prepare for separation?
• Separate from my spouse?
• more...

Court Forms

• Supreme Court: Samples · Blank
• Provincial Court: Samples · Blank

Advisory Committee and Editorial Team

JP Boyd

insert actual contributors here

An advisory committee and editorial team have assisted JP Boyd in migrating and updating the BC Family Law Resource website into this wikibook.

A person licensed to practice law in a particular jurisdiction by that jurisdiction's law society. See "barrister and solicitor."

A mandatory direction of the court that is binding and enforceable upon the parties to a court proceeding. An "interim order" is a temporary order made following the hearing of an interim application. A "final order" is a permanent order, made following the trial of the court proceeding or the parties' settlement, following which the only recourse open to a dissatisfied party is to appeal. Failing to abide by the terms of an order may constitute contempt of court. See "appeal," "consent order," "contempt of court," "decision" and "declaration."

Under the Divorce Act, either of two people who are married to one another, whether of the same or opposite genders. Under the Family Law Act, spouse includes married spouses, unmarried parties who have lived together in a marriage-like relationship for at least two years, and, for all purposes of the act other than the division of property or debt, unmarried parties who have lived together for less than two years and have had a child together. See "marriage" and "marriage-like 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."

A court established and staffed by the provincial government, which includes Small Claims Court, Youth Court, and Family Court. The Provincial Court is the lowest level of court in British Columbia and is restricted in the sorts of matters it can deal with. It is, however, the most accessible of the two trial courts and no fees are charged to begin or defend a family law proceeding. The Family Court of the Provincial Court cannot deal with the division of family property or any claims under the Divorce Act. See "Divorce Act," "judge" and "jurisdiction."