Ontario’s Family Court recently dealt with the interesting issue of whether an order obligating a separated couple to sell their matrimonial home should be set aside because of a variety of hardships claimed by the wife, including ADHD. What Happened? The parties separated in June 2016. They have two school-aged children who continue to live …
Read MoreEarlier this year, an eight-month-old baby in British Columbia made international news when the child was issued a health card that does not specify a sex. The document is widely believed to be a first, both in Canada and worldwide. A Health Card with No Specified Sex The child’s parent, Kori Doty, a non-binary transgender …
Read MoreThe Ontario Court of Appeal has upheld a cohabitation agreement that a woman signed decades ago without obtaining independent legal advice, finding no reason to overturn the agreement. What Happened? The parties in question began to live together in 1997. The husband had previously had an acrimonious separation and wanted to avoid a similar situation …
Read MoreHave a look at my AdvocateDaily post on equal child support treatment for disabled children of both married and unmarried spouses. http://www.advocatedaily.com/jennifer-samara-shuber-successful-constitutional-challenge-helps-unmarried-parents-of-disabled-adults-1.html
Read MoreThe Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO) recently found that a Christian Evangelical school that refused to admit the adopted son of a same-sex married couple did not breach the Ontario Human Rights Code. What Happened? A married lesbian couple wanted to enroll their adopted child in a privately owned and operated Christian school. Both …
Read MoreMany of the clients I see have not yet separated. They are having problems in their relationships and they consult with me to discuss their rights and obligations in the event of a separation. For parents, the issue of the children is front and centre. Parents invariably ask me how and what to tell the …
Read MoreFamily Lawyers Advising on Divorce and Social Media It has become commonplace for people document nearly every aspect of their lives on social media. Checking into a popular restaurant on Facebook and later posting a photo to Instagram, commenting on a topic on Twitter, or posting about a business endeavour on LinkedIn have become ubiquitous …
Read MoreSurrogacy is strictly controlled in Canada, with limits on compensating surrogates, and correspondingly stiff penalties for any infractions. However, surrogacy experts say that despite the laws in place to ensure that surrogacy does not become a paid business, there are vast grey areas in law and policy that are problematic. Altruistic Surrogacy in Canada Canadian …
Read MoreThis was an interesting question that an Ontario court grappled with several years ago, in a decision that made some interesting points. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice was asked to determine the potential legal viability of a wife’s lawsuit against her common-law husband’s mistress, and against the fertility clinic where the mistress was employed, …
Read MoreTwo levels of court in Nova Scotia recently discussed the question of who constitutes a parent, for the purposes of adoption, in that province. At issue was whether the biological father of a child that had been put up for adoption should have received notice of that adoption even though he had no relationship with …
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