Family law is a complex and ever-evolving niche of legal practice that involves a comprehensive range of issues pertaining to family relationships, such as marriage, divorce, child custody and wills.
It involves a lot of struggle and effort to manage a family. The best solution for such issues is to hire a Family Law Lawyer. They can help you navigate these issues, ensuring the best outcomes.
In this article, we will discuss various elements of family law and the best ways to resolve legal matters involving your loved ones. We will also examine how the Best Family Law Firm in Surrey can help you tackle such issues.
Aspects of Family Law
Cohabitation Agreements
In Canada, 15% of people aged between 25 and 64 in 2017 said that they were in a common law relationship. Due to this, many disputes have taken place after couples split up. The rules of property division, including a property division, are not applicable to common-law couples. Typically, the owner is the person who brought the property after the split.
This agreement defines the rights and responsibilities of each person and also has an exit plan if ever required. It can establish the terms that the couple have already agreed upon with respect to property division, debt, assets, children, and what should happen when one of the partners pass away.
Prenuptial Agreements:
In Toronto, Prenuptial Agreements are also labelled as domestic contracts, although both terms can interchange in other provinces of Canada. These contracts are written agreements between two individuals who want to marry or are already married or in a common-law union.
The cohabitation contract automatically becomes a marriage contract when a common-law couple gets married. It provides a plan for managing finances, debts, property and spousal support if you want to separate or have a divorce.
Hiring a lawyer to draft a prenup agreement is comparatively more cost-effective than the legal cost of a divorce. Hence, you can get this agreement to avoid any complications during a separation or divorce.
Separation/Divorce:
Some couples get into a situation where they end up separating or divorcing. Recently, divorce among younger couples has been on a low in the last two decades, whereas the number of divorces amongst older couples has increased. Such cases are labelled as “grey divorce” or divorce in the demographic above 50 years old.
A family lawyer can help you with various aspects of the divorce process, including dispute resolution, spousal support, review of separation agreements, property division, child custody and support.
With legal support, you can walk away from such a marriage without any problem.
Wills and Estate Planning:
According to a survey conducted by CIBC in 2013, 50% of Canadians did not plan an estate. Some people at a young age don’t worry about a will or think that they don’t have enough assets for having one.
If you don’t plan your will, the laws within your province of residence will have control over your asset division and appoint a guardian for your minor children.
It also prevents your estate from being executed as per your wishes. Estate administrations are complex, especially when there are unusual assets and holdings in more than one jurisdiction.
However, you can avoid this with the help of a lawyer specializing in estate planning laws. It will help you ensure that your children and other loved ones are financially protected and there are zero conflicts between heirs and beneficiaries.
How to Resolve Legal Family Conflicts?
Want to resolve your family matters smoothly? Here are the steps that can help you tackle these issues peacefully and ensure the best outcomes:
Negotiation:
Negotiation is the best way to deal with family law disputes via direct communication between lawyers. You need to know the law and have some helpful facts to ensure an negotiate effectively and get a solution both the parties can accept.
Mediation:
In this process, two opposite parties try to reach an agreement through a person called a mediator. They will assist with identifying problems and finding answers for matters like parenting, support and property division.
Parties can try this method before going ahead with a court case or anytime during the court process. Mediation is a voluntary and cost-effective method that has resulted in long-lasting solutions.
Collaborative Family Law:
It is a client-directed, out-of-court process created to avoid conflicts and prevent adverse effects of litigation with the help of transparency, full disclosure and dispute resolutions based on interests.
Final Verdict
It is not easy to run a family. You need a collaborative effort to work things out if there are any indifferences or conflicts.
If everything doesn’t work out, a legal aid can be helpful for you in such cases.
You can consult legal experts who can help you in complex issues such as divorce, cohabitation or prenuptial agreement, and wills to ensure the best possible outcomes.