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Difference between revisions of "Understanding the Legal System for Family Law Matters"

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There is no rule that says that you must have a lawyer represent you in court. Although a court proceeding can be complicated to manage and the rules of court can be confusing, you have the right to represent yourself.  
There is no rule that says that you must have a lawyer represent you in court. Although a court proceeding can be complicated to manage and the rules of court can be confusing, you have the right to represent yourself.  


If you do decide to represent yourself in a court proceeding, you have a responsibility to the other parties and to the court to have a general understanding of the law that applies to your proceeding and of the procedural rules that govern common litigation processes like document disclosure and discovery and common court processes like making interim applications. Reading through the rest of this chapter and the chapter [[Resolving Family Law Problems in Court]] is a good start. You might also want to read a short note I've written for people who are representing themselves in a court proceeding, [[Media:SRL_Bill_of_Rights_and_Responsibilities_-_November_2012_-_JP_Boyd.pdf|The Rights and Responsibilities of the Self-Represented Litigant]] (PDF).
If you do decide to represent yourself in a court proceeding, you have a responsibility to the other parties and to the court to have a general understanding of the law that applies to your proceeding and of the procedural rules that govern common litigation processes like document disclosure and discovery and common court processes like making interim applications. A good start would be to read through the other sections in this chapter, covering [[The Court System for Family Matters|the court system]], [[The Law for Family Matters|the law]], and [[Lawyers & The Law Society|the role of lawyers]], as well as the chapter on [[Resolving Family Law Problems in Court]]. You might also want to read a short note I've written for people who are representing themselves in a court proceeding, "[[Media:SRL_Bill_of_Rights_and_Responsibilities_-_November_2012_-_JP_Boyd.pdf|The Rights and Responsibilities of the Self-Represented Litigant]]" (PDF).


==Resources and links==
==Resources and links==
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===Legislation===
===Legislation===


* ''[[Family Law Act]]''
*''[[Family Law Act]]''
* ''[[Divorce Act]]''
*''[[Divorce Act]]''
* ''[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/Const/index.html Constitution Acts, 1867 to 1982]''
*''[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/Const/index.html Constitution Acts, 1867 to 1982]''


===Resources===
===Resources===


* [[Media:SRL_Bill_of_Rights_and_Responsibilities_-_November_2012_-_JP_Boyd.pdf|The Rights and Responsibilities of the Self-Represented Litigant]] (PDF)
*[[Media:SRL_Bill_of_Rights_and_Responsibilities_-_November_2012_-_JP_Boyd.pdf|The Rights and Responsibilities of the Self-Represented Litigant]] (PDF)


===Links===
===Links===


* [http://courts.gov.bc.ca Courts of British Columbia website]
*[http://courts.gov.bc.ca Courts of British Columbia website]
* [http://www.scc-csc.gc.ca/home-accueil/index-eng.asp Supreme Court of Canada website]
*[http://www.scc-csc.gc.ca/home-accueil/index-eng.asp Supreme Court of Canada website]




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