Recent Publications of the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family
The Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family, an independent organization affiliated with the University of Calgary, closed on 31 August 2018. The closure of the Institute is somewhat of a...
View ArticleThe Rights and Responsibilities Of Self-Represented Parties in Arbitration
About eight years ago I published a document called The Rights and Responsibilities of Self-Represented Litigants that took rights-based approach to the role of litigants within the justice system and...
View ArticleThe Gloomy Future of Access to Family Justice in British Columbia: Outcomes...
In December 2014, the Benchers of the Law Society of British Columbia unanimously agreed to act on the recommendations of its Legal Services Regulatory Framework Task Force and pursue “an amendment to...
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Designing Rules of Procedure for the Arbitration of Family Law Disputes
In Canada, the available sets of arbitration rules are designed for corporate-commercial disputes and general civil disputes. None are designed for family law disputes, which is especially problematic...
View ArticleThe Conundrum of the Difficult Client
From the moment I created my first public legal education family law website, BC Family Law Resource, in 2001, I have been contacted by people from across Canada, mostly in British Columbia, dealing...
View ArticleThe Problem of Supporting Family Law Research: Creating a National Research Fund
The Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family closed its doors on 31 August 2018, largely as a result of its inability to make up the shortfall in its revenues from sources other than its...
View ArticleThe Need for a Code of Conduct for Family Law Disputes, Part 2
Last Tuesday, I was honoured to be presented with the Distinguished Service Award for service to the community from the Law Society of Alberta and the Canadian Bar Association Alberta. I took advantage...
View ArticleThe Intersection of Family Law and Psychology: Exciting New Course Coming to...
The Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia has just published the details of a new continuing professional development program scheduled for 11 and 12 April 2019 in Vancouver. “A Deeper...
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“Family Justice in Canada Is at a Breaking Point” Redux*
The fees charged by many family law lawyers are out of reach for even middle-income Canadians and, in some underserved areas of the country, there aren’t enough family law lawyers to meet the needs of...
View ArticleA Better Alternative to Family Law Rules of Arbitration
I spent a fair amount time in early 2018 drafting a set of rules for the arbitration of family law cases. This was motivated, firstly, by provisions of British Columbia’s Arbitration Act that require...
View ArticleParenting Coordination Unboxed and Repurposed
Parenting coordination was first developed in California in the 1980s as a response to family law cases characterized by elevated levels of conflict and repeated trips to court. The Special Master...
View ArticleThe Meaning of Justice in Family Law Disputes
Justice is a complicated concept. The dictionary definition is short enough, typically given as “fairness and moral conduct,” but the seductive simplicity of the explanation ignores the important...
View ArticleBridging the Gap: Providing Children With Limited Standing in Family Law...
The recent decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal in A.B. v C.D. v E.F. offers a couple of troubling conclusions with respect to the rights of children and whether determining the presence of...
View ArticleUnofficial Consolidated Divorce Act Available
There is, as yet, no official consolidation of the current Divorce Act and Bill C-78 as passed by Parliament, and I understand that one isn’t likely to be coming soon. This isn’t a problem for many,...
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The Expanding Meaning of “Other Cause”: Support Entitlement Beyond the Age of...
I continue to be amazed by the speed with which judicial interpretation of family law statutes evolves, and how that evolution undermines what little certainty those statutes provide to separating...
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The End Is Not Yet Nigh: Remote Dispute Resolution in the Age of COVID-19
It would be nice if there was an inverse correlation between the frequency of family law disputes and the gravity of social crises, but, thanks to the peculiarities of human nature, such is not the...
View ArticleDeveloping a Model Parenting Assessment Order in British Columbia
Parenting assessments, known as custody and access reports, custody evaluations or bilateral assessments elsewhere, are commonly used in family law disputes in British Columbia whenever there is a...
View ArticleAnnotated Model Parenting Assessment Order for Use in the Supreme Court of...
As mentioned in an earlier post, I am part of a small working group that has been developing a standard order for the appointment of mental health professionals to prepare parenting assessments, also...
View ArticleAnnouncing the National Family Law Arbitration Course
I am really very pleased to announce the new National Family Law Arbitration Course, a 40-hour course organized by myself, Lorne Wolfson and the inimitable Lawrence Pinksy. This course is intended to...
View ArticleArbitration and the Death of the Common Law
A couple of years ago, in the Before Times, I chaired a panel discussion on the arbitration of family law disputes at a wonderful program hosted by the Legal Education Society of Alberta in Lake...
View ArticleExpedited Decision-Making in Parenting Coordination
Parenting coordination has two primary functions, one legal and the other psychosocial. The legal side of parenting coordination revolves around the implementation of parenting plans, resolving...
View ArticleEnforcing Agreements and Determinations in Parenting Coordination
Enforcing agreements and orders, those relating to parenting anyway, is difficult enough in family law disputes. Enforcing agreements and determinations in the context of parenting coordination, whose...
View ArticleUsing Codes of Conduct in Parenting Coordination
Parenting coordination can be difficult work. The people for whom parenting coordination is a cost-effective alternative to litigation, because no one provides this sort of service for free and...
View ArticleIt’s Back! Announcing the 2022 National Family Law Arbitration Course
This course has been rescheduled – thanks, Covid – to October and November 2022. Registration is now open. I am pleased to announce the 2022 edition of the National Family Law Arbitration Course, a...
View ArticleNews From the National Family Law Arbitration Course
After a slight delay owing – we think – to the pandemic, the National Family Law Arbitration Course will run later this year, in October and November, and be preceded by two single-day programs for...
View ArticleSuggestions for Lawyers Taking Family Law Cases to Mediation
It’s usually a relief when opposing counsel agrees to take a file to mediation. Not only do you gain more control over the outcome under less pressure, you get to shrug off a lot of the anxiety...
View ArticleSuggestions for Lawyers Taking Family Law Matters to Arbitration
This note provides some suggestions for lawyers taking family law cases to arbitration, offered from my perspective as a family law arbitrator. The theme that runs throughout this article is...
View ArticleLast-Best Offer Arbitration in Family Law Disputes
One of the most significant advantages arbitration offers over litigation is the ability to design a bespoke dispute resolution process tailored to the circumstances of the particular case, offering no...
View ArticleAnnouncing the National Family Law Arbitration Course, 2024
Mark your calendars, the third iteration of the National Family Law Arbitration Course begins in January 2024. Courses in arbitration practice are available from organizations across Canada. While...
View ArticleDealing With Pets Under British Columbia’s Family Law Act
The recent changes to the Family Law Act dealing with pets in the context of family law disputes received a lot of attention and were widely celebrated. However, they didn’t do much to alter the...
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