Practice area
Separation and divorce in British Columbia
Separation is not a filing. In British Columbia you are separated when one of you decides the relationship is over and communicates it, and from that point a set of consequences begins to run whether or not anyone has spoken to a lawyer. Divorce is a separate step that only married people need, and it comes at the end rather than the beginning. This page sets out the order things actually happen in.
Who this is for
Separation and divorce
You have separated, or you have decided to, and you want to understand what happens next. It applies whether or not you were married. The Family Law Act treats unmarried partners as spouses for most purposes once they have lived in a marriage-like relationship for the period the Act sets, or where they have a child together, so a great deal of this applies to you even if there was never a wedding.
The work
What we do
- 01Establish the date of separation and which set of rules applies to you. The date is the reference point for what counts as family property and a limitation period runs from it, so it is not a detail. Married and unmarried spouses are treated alike for property and support under the Family Law Act; only married people need a divorce, and only the Supreme Court can grant one.
- 02Set out the issues that have to be resolved, which are parenting, child support, spousal support, and the division of property and debt, and identify which of them are urgent and which can take their time.
- 03Deal with anything that cannot wait. Accounts being emptied, a home being listed, a child being withheld, or a safety concern. There are interim orders and protective steps for each of these, and they are available quickly.
- 04Talk through the routes honestly: negotiation between lawyers, mediation, collaborative process, arbitration, and court. Each asks something different of you in time, disclosure and difficulty, and most files resolve without a trial.
- 05Exchange full financial disclosure. This is the foundation and it is not optional. An agreement built on incomplete disclosure can be set aside years later, which is the opposite of what you are trying to buy.
- 06Put the resolution into a form that holds: a written separation agreement, a consent order, or an order after a hearing, and file it where filing makes it enforceable.
- 07Where you are married and want the marriage ended, prepare the divorce. Most are granted without anyone attending court, on documents filed at the registry, once the arrangements for any children are in place.
- 08Deal with what people forget afterwards: beneficiary designations, wills, and the names on title and on the mortgage.
Your part
What we need from you
Gathering these early is the single biggest thing you can do to keep a file on schedule.
- Two pieces of government-issued identificationOne has to carry your photograph.
- The date you separated, and how it was communicatedA limitation period runs from separation for unmarried spouses and from the divorce for married ones, and the date also fixes what counts as family property. Where the date is unclear or disputed, say so early. It is much easier to deal with at the start than in an affidavit later.
- Your marriage certificate, if you were marriedThe court requires proof of the marriage before it will grant a divorce, and a certified copy is what satisfies it. If you married outside Canada, the certificate and a certified translation both take time to obtain, so start that now rather than at the end.
- Full financial disclosureTax returns and notices of assessment, recent pay statements, every bank, investment and registered account, pensions, debts, and financial statements for any business. Disclosure is the single most common reason an agreement is later challenged, and doing it properly the first time is what makes the result durable.
- Details of the childrenFull names, dates of birth, where they live, and the schedule they have actually been following since separation. A court will not grant a divorce without being satisfied that reasonable arrangements for the children's support are in place.
- Property documents, including from before the relationshipTitle and mortgage statements, plus records of what each of you owned and owed when the relationship started. Property brought into the relationship, and certain gifts and inheritances, can be excluded from division, but the exclusion has to be traced with documents and the burden is on the person claiming it.
- Any existing agreement or orderIncluding a cohabitation or marriage agreement, an order from another province or country, and anything signed informally between you. These change what is open to negotiate, sometimes substantially.
Risk
Watch for
The things that actually derail this kind of file, rather than the ones that sound alarming.
The deadline that runs from separation
The Family Law Act limits how long you have to start a claim for property division or spousal support. It runs from the date of divorce for married spouses and from the date of separation for unmarried ones. It is one of very few hard cut-offs in family law, and a claim you clearly had can be lost simply by leaving it. If you are unsure how much time you have, that question is worth an appointment on its own.
Agreements set aside for incomplete disclosure
The Act allows an agreement about property to be set aside where a party failed to disclose significant property or debt. This is the most common route by which a settlement someone thought was final gets reopened, sometimes years later. Full disclosure feels like the slow option at the time, and it is what makes the agreement worth having.
Excluded property that cannot be traced
What you brought into the relationship, and gifts and inheritances received during it, can be excluded from division. But the exclusion has to be proved with records by the person claiming it, and the increase in its value during the relationship is generally shared regardless. Old statements matter far more than people expect, and they get harder to obtain with time.
Beneficiary designations that nobody updates
Separating does not change who is named on your registered accounts, pensions and life insurance, and a divorce does not automatically fix all of it either. Former spouses remain named on these for years, and it is discovered by the people left behind. Review every designation and your will as part of the separation, not afterwards.
Questions
Common questions
Do I have to file something to be separated?
No. You are separated when one of you has decided the relationship is over and has communicated that, by words or by conduct. There is no form and no registry. You can be separated while still living in the same home, though where that is the case it helps to be able to show how your lives were separate.
Do I have to be separated before I can divorce?
For most people, yes. The usual ground is that the marriage has broken down, shown by living separate and apart for the period the Divorce Act sets. There are two other grounds, adultery and cruelty, which require proving something rather than waiting and which most people do not use. Only married people need a divorce at all.
Do we have to go to court?
Most people do not have a trial. Files resolve through negotiation, mediation, the collaborative process, or arbitration, and the agreement is then turned into a consent order or a separation agreement. Court is there for the situations that need it: urgency, safety, a refusal to disclose, or a genuine dispute that will not close. Even a divorce is usually granted on documents filed at the registry with nobody attending.
Is my common-law partner entitled to half the house?
Unmarried couples who are spouses under the Family Law Act divide family property and family debt in the same way married couples do. What each of you owned before the relationship is generally excluded, but the increase in its value during the relationship is usually shared. So the answer often turns on what the home was worth when the relationship started and what it is worth now, rather than on whose name is on title.
Can we use the same lawyer?
No. Your interests are opposed, even where you are on good terms and agree about everything. What is available instead is a mediator who acts for neither of you, with each of you getting independent advice before signing. Many separations are resolved that way, and it is often quicker and less painful than two sets of letters.
Talk to us about your file
We quote your file in writing before we start work, so the number on your statement of adjustments is the number you agreed to.
