Blog Archive
Estate Considerations in Separation or Divorce
Are you going through a separation or divorce?If so, you are probably thinking about these 4 things: Knowing how your children will be cared for and how the law treats the estates of newly separated or divorced parents is a key part of planning. Think about: These questions are part of the overall plan you’re…
Collaborative Divorce: Prompt Financial Disclosure Is Crucial!
In Family Law matters, the full and prompt exchange of financial disclosure sets the tone. In a Collaborative Divorce, both participants commit to quickly and honestly providing a complete picture of their finances (including a detailed list of assets, debts, income, and expenses) so we can efficiently move to problem solving. Prompt disclosure enables cooperation,…
Mortgage Renewals in Canada: What You Need to Know in 2025
If your mortgage is up for renewal in 2025, you’re not alone. According to recent data, over 1.2 million Canadian mortgages are set to renew this year—a staggering number that represents a significant portion of the market. With interest rates higher than they’ve been in recent years, it’s never been more important to approach your…
How Collaborative Family Law Can Help Protect Your Family Business During Divorce
I recently had the chance to chat with Leah Tolton KC, a corporate lawyer with expertise in Family Enterprises (and Partner from Bennett Jones LLP in Edmonton) on her Beyond Succession podcast, where we explored a topic that doesn’t get enough attention: how collaborative family law can actually save family-owned businesses during a divorce or separation. You can listen…
What Happens to Pets in a Divorce?
When a couple separates, it is very common for them to seek advice on the division of their property, parenting of their children and how they will ensure they are each financially supported. But what happens to pets? Pets are often a very important part of the family unit, and we love and treat them…
What Does Canada Pension Plan (“CPP”) Credit Splitting Mean?
The Canada Pension Plan (“CPP”) is the pension plan to which you’ve been contributing during your work life. It is available for you to start collecting as early as age 60 and as late as age 70. Your CPP contributions are either deducted off of your pay cheques (with your employer matching your contributions) or…
How Much Will This Collaborative Divorce Cost Me?
If you and your spouse or partner have decided that it is time to look at separation or divorce, the two of you will often share the same concerns. Where will I live? How do we best protect our children? How long will this take? What is it going to cost me? Costs to clients…
Why Starting with a Divorce Coach Can Be a Game Changer
Faced with the reality of divorce, the initial steps can feel overwhelming and directionless. While the legal framework of divorce, governed by the Divorce Act and various provincial and territorial laws, is undeniably central, many find themselves grappling with a storm of emotions and practical uncertainties before even knowing where to begin legally. This is…
Putting Yourself in your Post-Divorce Shoes – Looking Back
When you are starting out in your divorce journey, there are so many things to consider. Many people will go through the divorce process, then look back and wish that things had gone differently. Let’s look at this from the lens of those who have gone through divorce, and are looking back with what they…
What are Contingent Taxes in Family Property Division?
Often towards the end of a divorce, a family property statement (“FPS”) will be prepared. This sets out who is keeping which assets, who will be responsible for which liabilities, what the values of those assets and liabilities are, and also consider the impact of exemptions, contingent taxes, and a host of other factors. Often…
Podcast: Collaborative Divorce from an Accountant’s and Lawyer’s Perspective
I’m Dan Couvrette, the publisher of Family Lawyer Magazine. I’m speaking with two top Florida professionals on the subject of collaborative divorce. Some of our family lawyer listeners may be very familiar with the collaborative process and perhaps offer this as an option for their clients; some lawyers may be unfamiliar with the process; and,…
Avoid the “Prisoner’s Dilemma” in your separation
The Prisoner’s Dilemma is a simple yet powerful thought experiment. Imagine two people, let’s call them Alice and Bob, who are accused of committing a crime together. They are arrested and placed in separate cells with no way to communicate. The police don’t have enough evidence to convict them of the main crime, but they…
Fair Settlement
When asked what they are looking for in settlement negotiations, clients will often say they want a “fair” settlement. But what does it mean for a settlement to be fair? The Dictionary is not particularly helpful in defining fairness. Dictionary.com defines the adjective fair as “free from bias, dishonesty or injustice”. The Collins English Dictionary…
Neutral Financial Experts Save You Money
When going through a Collaborative Family Law (CFL) process, it is important to have a team of professionals to support both parties in reaching a fair and equitable settlement. One key member of this team is the neutral financial professional. A neutral financial professional is an expert who provides financial analysis, advice, and support to…
Stay in Control of Your Process
Divorce is a challenging time that can be emotionally overwhelming for everyone involved. The process can become even more complicated when there are disputes over property, finances, and child custody. However, choosing a collaborative law approach to divorce can help couples regain control of the process and the agenda items. In this blog post, we…
2023 Introductory Collaborative Course
Collaborative Family Law is quickly becoming the preferred method for resolving family law issues in Alberta. If you are convinced there is a better way to resolve domestic matters than litigation, then this is the course for you! This is the first of three courses that you will need to get your official designation as…
Take Tax Into Account When Dividing Assets
Divorce or separation can be an emotional and challenging time, and one of the most complicated aspects is dividing assets. Registered investments, such as pensions, RRSPs, and LIRAs, are often a significant part of a couple’s financial picture, and understanding how to divide them can be confusing. Registered investments have special tax considerations. More specifically,…
Cohabiting/Married Partners and Joint Property
So you are married or living together and one of you owns a property, and you are thinking about putting it in joint names. Tread carefully, this can be a minefield. Putting a property in joint names (joint tenancy) means that if either of you dies the property will automatically go to the survivor. This…
The three divorces
Turmoil In my meetings with divorce and common law separation clients I observe that there are typically many divorces occurring at the same time for any one family experiencing separation. The two partners experience their divorce differently, their children experience the divorce, but differently from their parents, and extended families and friendly support people have…
Family violence during COVID-19
Download the government of Alberta’s factsheet on Family violence during COVID-19 Quick Info Family Violence Info Line Call 310-1818. Available 24/7 in over 170 languages. Chat online with the info line at alberta.ca/SafetyChat, available daily from 8 AM to 8 PM in English. For more info, visit alberta.ca/family-violence-prevention.
I was temporarily laid off due to COVID-19, what happens to my child support payments?
The COVID-19 crisis has created financial uncertainty for Canadians, including many who are faced with temporary lay offs. A temporary lay off creates a unique circumstance for the payment of child support. Child support payments are usually based on the payor’s most recent income information, but a temporary lay off brings sudden reduction in earnings,…
Financial Help is Here
During divorce or separation, many people search for help on how to start organizing themselves and prepare for the money matters that will inevitably come up. Most people start out with the feeling that everything will be divided equally and will be handled in a respectful manner. However, money can be a contentious issue and…
Guideline Income: The Tail Wagging Support Obligations
Introduction During separation and after divorce, the higher income person (the “Payor”) may be obligated to pay spousal and / or child support to the lower income person (the “Recipient”). The amount of the support payment is dependent, in part, on the Guideline Income of the Payor and, in some situations, that of the Recipient….
COVID-19 and the Courts Q&A
How can we resolve any ongoing family law disputes while the Courts are not hearing most matters due to the COVID-19 pandemic? Accessing the legal system can be difficult at the best of times. As the world wades through the current pandemic, alternative dispute resolution processes should be given consideration. One such approach is to…
Mortgage Lending Through COVID-19
The Covid-19 pandemic has hit us hard in the financial services field. Mortgage brokers were deemed essential services and I may be a bit jealous when I see my friend’s social media feed, they are on their 25th Netflix series. Currency in our house these days with two people sharing on home office, is being…
Mortgage Deferral
10 Things You Should Know 1. Mortgage Payment Deferral IS NOT Payment Forgiveness – Your Loan Obligation Remains Payment Deferral is not payment amnesty. You are still required to pay your mortgage in full. During the Deferral process you will gain assistance from your lender to manage payments. This can include holding a payment and…
Podcast: What is Collaborative Practice?
In early June 2019, I had the pleasure of participating in a podcast interview with Catherine Potter to discuss the concepts of Collaborative Practice. In the hour-long episode of “You – The Universe, The Holistic Mind”, we discussed the basis of Collaborative Practice, it’s wide range of benefits and how it helps couples work through…
Comfort in Finances
The word finance evokes so many emotions in people that it can stop them in their tracks. Add in the word divorce and it becomes debilitating to a lot of people. The basic fear of not knowing what the end result will be can create more havoc, conflict, time loss, and ultimately, higher costs to…
You are a person first – by Anna Priemaza
You are a person first. The legal system is not designed for you, the individual. It’s designed for society as a whole. The court system is set up to be one size fits all, with processes and options that are predictable and standard, and with results that are fair and just on average. If you…
The “Grey Divorce” & Retirement
A growing trend in the divorce rates in Canada appears to be for middle age or older adults. Thus the term “grey divorce”. There are many concerns that middle age or retired couples may have with regards to splitting their retirement assets and adjusting their retirement goals. If the divorce is close to their anticipated…
Spousal Support – Lucille Birkett
Spouses in the Collaborative Divorce process often are concerned about how they are going to meet their lifestyle needs after they are separated. There is usually a period of transition from one household to two, as the children grow up and become independent, and as the spouses move through the stages of their working lives. …
Courts uphold your Appropriate Dispute Resolution process
How binding is the standard clause in a settlement contract, a.k.a. minutes of settlement, that requires the parties to attempt mediation or a 4x negotiation meeting before being allowed to bring a court application? For the most part, Queen’s Bench Justices in family chambers have been upholding and showing respect for the requirements of that…
Teri Bonnah Memorial Bursary
The Association of Collaborative Family Professionals (Edmonton) ‐ (ACFP(E)) ‐ established the Teri Bonnah Memorial Bursary in 2016 to provide financial assistance to newer members of the ACFP(E) who wish to pursue training or education that will develop their leadership skills. The first Bursary will be awarded on Sept. 23, 2016. [download id=”834″]
How a child specialist can make sure the voice of your child is heard during the divorce process
Parents generally worry about the impact of divorce on their children. Serious harm can happen for kids during separation and the aftermath if moms and dads get sidetracked by strong negative emotions and conflicts and lose perspective on what’s important for their youngsters during this difficult time.
How a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst can help you divide assets in divorce
A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst is an important member of your team of professionals that will help you navigate your divorce. A CDFA is your “financial coach” and will help you with the financial end of things.
Welcome!
On behalf of ACFP (Edmonton) and the Public Awareness Committee, we are pleased to welcome you to our new website. We hope you will find this a valuable resource on collaborative practice, a peaceful and respectful solution for your divorce or separation.
