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Divorce cases have gained notoriety as a process that pits the separating parties against one another. In reality, that’s not always the case and doesn’t have to be. Not every couple filing for divorce comes in with bad blood and ill intent. Family lawyers are aware that most couples have one goal in mind: an easy, clean and amicable split. In these cases, family lawyers opt to use a Collaborative Family Law approach.

What is this?

Read on and see how Collaborative Family Law works.

Basics of Collaborative Family Law 

What is “Collaborative Family Law”?

Collaborative Family Law aims to reach a resolution through a negotiation process to reach an amicable settlement instead of going to court. In this process, both parties agree to work together with the assistance of a family lawyer to iron out their issues and take into account their respective interests. This approach is best for couples that wish to keep their divorce private since Collaborative Family Law is a confidential process.

What’s the Process?

As a collaborative process, both parties and their respective family lawyers will meet in a conference room to resolve matters together. All conversations during these meetings aren’t meant to leave that room, which is what we call “without prejudice”. None of what the parties say will be communicated to outsiders, including within any affidavits. The confidentiality requirement is agreed by both parties signing a formal Participation Agreement as well as their lawyers. 

The Participation Agreement ensures that everyone agrees to not bring their case to court or threaten to go to court to leverage a resolution. The meetings begin each session with an agenda, agreed by  the parties in advance, and each meeting restricts itself to those items. The structure of Collaborative Family Law requires that both parties and their lawyers all be present during these meetings. Prior to these meetings, each party full exchanges financial information so that all of the ‘cards’ are on the table and available for discussion.

How Collaborative Family Law Helps

What Are the Benefits?

There are reasons people opt for Collaborative Family Law when undertaking a divorce. With a negotiation process, it presents a non-antagonistic approach that makes for a smoother divorce emotionally and financially. What makes it beneficial?

Why Collaborative Family Law is a great approach:

• Maintain good relations with your former spouse during and after separation;
• Preserve healthy family relationships, especially with one’s children;
• Reduce lawyer fees by not going to court to fight over every issue;
• Have your interests heard and accounted for;
• Ensure and equitable split between the two parties;
• Less stress resulting from the divorce process

Divorce is never easy. Make divorce less complicated and painless for you and your family by considering Collaborative Family Law with McLean Legal. 

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation, and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

Generally, lawyers have a reputation for being rather expensive to hire. Unfortunately, that applies to family lawyers as well. Every day, many low-income families and individuals in Calgary struggle to afford a family lawyer. It can be disheartening, if not devastating, for some to have to have potentially crucial family legal matters left unresolved. However, you do have options. Check out some courses of action you may consider using, so you can maintain your legal position and get your case moving forward  and obtain resolution.

What Avenues to Take

Legal Resources

There is an old saying about knowledge being powerful but we prefer to say that obtaining knowledge is empowering; this is especially so if you are considering representing yourself at Court.  Thankfully, there are a lot of legal resources you can find online including from what to expect within court proceedings to legal information that you can utilize to help advance your case. Family law information can be found from reputable sources like Law Central Alberta, which is a great resource in encompassing all facets of family legal issues. In addition, there is a readily available yet credible handbook on family law from the Canadian Judicial Council. These resources translate legal jargon into plain language that you can understand. 

Apply for Legal Aid

Not comfortable with representing yourself? That’s completely understandable. There is so much to understanding the law that it can be overwhelming to try to comprehend, much less apply it to a case you wish to bring to court. For those struggling to afford a family lawyer, reaching out to non-profit organizations like Legal Aid Alberta for representation and legal services is a potentially viable option. Many of their lawyers are familiar with different areas of the law, including family law.  If  you are eligible for Legal Aid Alberta, they can help provide you with a family lawyer to assist you.

If ineligible, another route would be to utilize the University of Calgary’s Student Legal Assistance. They can provide both free legal advice and representation from their law students. Another alternative would be Calgary Legal Guidance.

Reach Out for Legal Advice

Sometimes everyone needs a little bit of advice to nudge their case into gear. Many organizations can provide free legal advice, even on family law issues. If you require quick legal advice, there are toll-free numbers you can call for general legal information such as Dial-A-Law funded by the Alberta Law Foundation.

Even paying for one hour of a family lawyer’s time is invaluable to help you navigate your case and the legal system.

Finding an affordable family lawyer isn’t easy – we recognize that. That’s why at McLean Legal we  provide one-time free consults to help you get started. 

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation, and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

Family lawyers in Calgary are available to provide assistance in a number of ways, including mediation and separation services. They can also assist families, couples and individuals who are navigating the legal system to understand and complete a process that is often quite intimidating to them. Below, we’ll look at these services in more detail and provide you with a better understanding of just what it is that family lawyers do.

 

Services Offered by Family Lawyers in Calgary

 

Mediation Services

 

Separating and conflicted couples can use the services of Calgary family lawyers for mediation. This cooperative process is facilitated by the lawyer and helps people move through the separation process together, dividing assets, making decisions that benefit the children and shaping a final result that, despite being one of compromise, ends up being mutually beneficial.

 

Divorce & Separation Services

 

Family lawyers in Calgary also provide divorce and separation services for their clients. Except in the case of a joint divorce, this is where a lawyer represents only one individual’s interests. This means the aim is to achieve their client’s goals and expectations rather than working towards everyone’s mutual benefit.

 

Court-related Services

 

Family lawyers are also responsible for the court-related duties of their clients. For instance, filing the necessary paperwork, communicating with clerks for filings and the scheduling of hearings, and litigation that may all be necessary to resolve each and every issue a client needs to resolve. These services are essential to divorce and separation.

 

Contact Our Family Lawyers Today

 

To learn more about the services offered by our family lawyers, or to receive a consultation, contact us today. We hope to assist you soon.

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

The cost of divorce lawyers in Calgary is important for you to know as a client or potential client. This information helps people considering a divorce, or currently going through one, to understand the value of a legal professional’s services. However, pinpointing an exact total amount for these services is difficult to ascretain due to various factors.

 

What Affects the Cost of Calgary Divorce Lawyers

 

Several factors affect the cost of divorce lawyers in Calgary. The lawyer you work with, their payment structure, the extent of litigation, the complexity of the divorce issues, reacting to steps taken by counsel for the ex-partner and other factors all play a part in determining the final cost of a lawyer. There are also expenses called “disbursements” such as filing fees, expert reports, and so on.

Below, we take a look at some of the most important factors to consider when considering the cost of a divorce lawyer’s services to help you better understand how price fluctuations can exist and also why many lawyers can still be affordable for people of all different economic circumstances.

 

The Lawyer You Work With

 

The lawyer you choose to work with will vary the price considerably. More experienced and established lawyers will charge more for their services than newer lawyers; it makes sense as they have been working in family law for much longer. Similarly, law firms that employ several lawyers and legal assistants may offer faster services but are also likely to charge more for their services as bigger firms have larger business overhead.

Still, at a basic level, the price of their services often comes down to the individual lawyer you are considering hiring. Some lawyers may take cases with Legal Aid for those of lesser means and at reduced Legal Aid hourly rates, some may be willing to lower their rates or work “pro bono” (i.e. free) to help someone in need and others may only accept cases at their usual hourly rate. Knowing what your needs are can help you decide on which legal professional is right for you.

 

The Lawyer’s Payment Structure

 

All lawyers will take a retainer fee as an up-front payment to be applied towards your legal work and enter into a retainer agreement which confirms the contract between both parties. On top of this reatiner fee, lawyers generallly charge for their services by the hour or portions of an hour, as applicable. At most, a good lawyer will never give you a quote on a divorce file for they will truly not know how much time and effort your particular matter may take to resolve; at most, they may give you a ballpark figure and reassess that as the work and the file progresses.
estimated.

A client should have ongoing conversations with their lawyer about the steps recommended to be taken and how it will help their case in order to make informed choices about legal fees to be incurred.

A few lawyers may work on a contingency basis, which means that they are only paid when the divorce is completed – however, know that this is extremely rare.

 

Whether or Not Litigation Is Involved

 

When a person’s separation proceeds to litigation with the filing of a divorce, it often means a lot more time, effort is required for the lawyers to resolve each issue, one after the other, at Court.

Therefore, unless circumstances demand otherwise, it is generally faster, easier and less expensive to avoid litigation. Many family lawyers also offer mediation or mediation/arbitration services, which help divorcing couples reach compromises amicably and avoid confrontation. These services also help ensure that any children involved receive the necessary care, attention and advocacy they need to transition.

 

Speak with a Qualified Divorce Lawyer Today!

 

To learn more about the costs of a divorce lawyer in Calgary, contact us today. We hope to assist you soon.

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

We understand how separating from your spouse/partner can be an incredibly stressful and emotionally draining situation to find oneself in. However, we also recognize that these circumstances can become that much more difficult when your spouse/partner chooses not to work towards a resolution, directly with you or through mediation, and refuses to consider signing a separation agreement. Unfortunately, this likely means the only course of action may be the litigation process.

 

By turning to our family law firm in Calgary, we can help you to navigate this process and assist you in reaching the outcome you are looking for. In the meantime, let us briefly explore what separation agreements are and how you can respond if your spouse/partner refuses to consider or sign one.

 

What Is A Separation Agreement?

 

A separation agreement is a contract between you and your spouse/partner that is legally enforceable following your separation or divorce. The goal of a separation agreement is to clearly settle all issues of support for children and/or spouses, parenting, and the division of property and debts while facilitating a smooth transition to your future and obtaining any applicable divorce judgment.

 

A detailed separation agreement should include the following:

 

• Full financial disclosure of both parties;
• Division of family property;
• Allocation of family debts;
• Conclude arrangements for spousal support, child support; decision-making authority for children, and parenting;
• A roadmap for resolving future disputes such as mediation, mediation/arbitration, the litigation process, or a combination of any of these;
• Any provisions to make amendments

 

It’s important to note that separation agreements are not legally required in Alberta. That being said, these contracts do have their advantages, as they save time and money, permit both spouses/partners to collaborate and dissolve their relationship together and in a dignified manner, establish clear boundaries and set the course for each party’s individual futures, and they facilitate the smooth conclusion of divorce proceedings.

What Happens If Your Spouse Will Not Sign A Separation Agreement?

 

What happens if one spouse/partner desires a separation agreement and the other either doesn’t want to participate or stops participating after the process has commenced? Well, a spouse/partner may opt not to sign a separation agreement for a number of reasons, including an unwillingness to come to terms with the separation itself or even a fear for the future. For some, there is a feeling of financial security in attempting to hold on to a failed relationship with someone familiar rather than contemplating an unknown future alone. 

 

Regardless of the cause, it’s important to avoid pressuring your spouse/partner and force a signature as the Court may later rescind any agreement reached through coercion or undue influence.

 

Instead, it’s recommended that you reach out to a family lawyer because if you can’t reach an agreement together, it will be the Court that will dictate everyone’s future– and neither of you may be happy with the result. 

 

With the years of experience and in-depth knowledge of the divorce legal system in Alberta that your family lawyer has, the best course of action can be determined. Some of these may include filing an application in court if your spouse/partner continues to avoid or reject any contemplation of settlement. Often, it only takes one Court application to convey the seriousness of the matter to one’s spouse/partner to get that party to return to settlement discussions and, ultimately, to attain a separation agreement.

 

If a spouse/partner refuses to entertain or sign a separation agreement, it will not jeopardize your legal entitlements or the ability to obtain a future divorce; it simply means your resolution will take a bit more time and expense to achieve. Fortunately, with McLean Legal Family Lawyers, you will get there!

 

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632. 

At McLean Legal Family Lawyers, we understand just how much a divorce can impact you and your entire family. In theory, while a divorce only occurs between you and your spouse as you work to dissolve your marriage, in practice, your children are just as involved.

Determining how your new living situation will affect your children’s lives is important and, understandably, it can be overwhelming. Having a trusted child custody lawyer on your side can be a benefit, as they help you to understand and work towards a custody/guardianship arrangement that is most advantageous for your children.

Here are some quick facts to help you before your first meeting with your lawyer.

Your Guide To Alberta’s Child Custody/Guardianship Laws

What is custody?

When you have children within a marriage, both of you are automatically the custodians, or guardians, of your children. These terms mean essentially the same thing.  Together, you share all the powers, responsibilities, and entitlements that come with parenting.  Custody is an often misunderstood term – it does not mean who has physical care of the children; that would be “parenting”.

For non-married couples, guardianship is not automatic and may need to be consensual or determined by a Court.

When you separate from each other, you do need to determine who will have the custodial rights/guardianship rights over your children.  Indeed, third parties, such as school administrators or childcare providers, will need to know whom they can take instructions from for the children’s welfare or pick-up arrangements.

What kind of custody/guardianship arrangements are there?

Joint Custody/Joint Guardianship

Joint custody/guardianship provides that both parents have an equal say in all major decisions affecting their children.  These joint entitlements have nothing to do with the amount of time each party may be parenting the children.  

Sole Custody/Sole Guardianship

In sole custody arrangements, only one party is responsible and entitled to make all major decisions regarding the children. While the other parent can provide their opinion regarding any particular decision to be made, the party having sole custody has the exclusive right to make the final decision.

Often, sole custody/guardianship is granted by a Court when it is clear that the parties cannot put aside their personal grievances or acrimony to make decisions that would benefit their children.  Remember, the relationship each party had with the other is different from the relationship each has with the children.  One can be a terrible partner but a wonderful parent, and it is vital to distinguish between the two.

When do you apply for custody/guardianship?

If you want to apply for child guardianship or to apply for child custody in Calgary, you can apply through either the Provincial Court (Family Division) or the Court of Queen’s Bench provided that you have a child or children living in Alberta.  Typically, one is also separated from their former partner at the time of the application.

You can attempt to apply on your own provided that you complete and swear all of the required forms located on the Courts’ website and are comfortable speaking to a Judge on your own.  If you are uncomfortable with either step, we recommend you consult with a lawyer for advice, direction and assistance.

Do the courts need to decide child custody/guardianship matters?

If you and your former partner have come to an agreement regarding the custody/guardianship of your children, then the courts do not have to get involved. 

However, if you disagree regarding what is in the best interests of your children and who should make the various decisions, then the Courts will need to step in. Their decision will be based on some of the following non-limiting factors:

• The children’s physical, psychological, and emotional needs
• The children’s need for stability
• Who has been caring for the children until now
• What the children want (typically considered regarding older children)
• The children’s relationships with each party
• The willingness of a party to foster the children’s relationship with the other party
• The ability to care for the children

Determining child custody/guardianship can be emotional and logistically challenging. By turning to a child custody lawyer in Calgary, you can be confident that the interests of your children are put first while striving to reach a beneficial outcome.

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

We understand how emotionally, mentally, and financially draining a divorce can be. No one enters a marriage planning for or expecting it to fail; so, mentally preparing yourself for the divorce proceedings  and the paperwork it entails can be difficult. 

Family lawyers who practice in divorce areas strive to ease some of the stress that often comes with undertaking this process, offering support and guidance during these times. 

While your divorce lawyer in Calgary is your best resource for information on divorce proceedings, here are a few facts to help you get started. 

Starting Your Divorce Proceedings

Obtain A Divorce Application

Once you have decided to divorce from your spouse, your first step should be turning to a divorce lawyer. Everything in family law is paper-driven and they will be able to provide you with the necessary forms.

Review The Ground For Divorce

Before you file for divorce, it’s important that you have a comprehensive understanding of the three legal grounds for divorce, as outlined by the Divorce Act (Canada). They are:

One Year Separation: You and your spouse have lived a life separate and apart for at least one year.  You can file for the divorce before reaching that year but cannot have it finalized unless that one year has passed.  If financial or other family limitations restrict you from physically  living separately from one another, you must be able to prove that you were living a separate life from your spouse, as if you were unmarried, during that time.  

If you have had a one year separation from your spouse, you will be proceeding to divorce and will not be able to stop that process even if you don’t want it yourself.

Adultery: Adultery is when you or your spouse has sexual relations with a person who is not your spouse. Adultery must be proven in court, either with your direct evidence or with an affidavit signed by the person who committed adultery.  Often,  it is sufficient to demonstrate circumstantial evidence as very few people will be able to hire private investigators to catch either spouse on film, like in the movies and tv.  If adultery is proven, you may be able to obtain a divorce earlier than waiting for the one year separation period to have occurred.

Cruelty: Cruelty and be either mental, physical or both. Depending on the nature of the cruelty, it may only need to occur once  if significant enough to form the basis of a divorce.  The cruelty could include domestic violence, constant verbal abuse or belittling, or financial oppression. Your spouse’s cruelty makes a continued state of matrimony impossible and evidence must be shown proving the abuse.  

Determine The Type of Divorce

Next, determine whether your divorce will be contested or uncontested. An uncontested divorce is when both you and your spouse agree to the terms of the divorce, and can file a Joint Statement of Claim for Divorce. A contested divorce is when you and your spouse disagree on the reason for the divorce or its terms, thus requiring the Court to resolve each of the items of dispute.  Contested divorces can potentially be very costly and take a longer time to resolve.

Consider Your Children

If there are children involved, you will need to make an outline of how you view what parenting, custody, and child support may look like to you in order to have a comprehensive discussion with your divorce lawyer.  They can manage your expectations and ensure legally-acceptable claims are advanced on your behalf in a filed Statement of Claim for Divorce so that you will achieve successful outcomes.

In an uncontested divorce, you would discuss with your divorce lawyer the agreements you and your spouse have reached so they can be properly submitted to the Court in a Joint Statement of Claim for Divorce. Again, your divorce lawyer can advise these agreements will be accepted by the Court, in whole or in part, based on legislation and case authority.

File The Claim

Your divorce lawyer in Calgary will be with you every step of the way, but this last step is pivotal – once the Claim is completed, it must be filed with the  Courthouse and served on your spouse by a neutral third party, called a process server, within one year of filing.  Once these steps occur, your divorce proceedings will be officially underway.

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

Family lawyers are often needed during emotionally charged moments of our lives, whether those moments be positive or negative. From adoptions and pre-nuptial agreements to divorce and child support arrangements, family lawyers can be a pillar of support and guidance during these times. 

 

While no one wants to pay more than they need to for legal fees, it’s also important that you choose a lawyer with whom you can develop a good relationship and whose advice you can trust. It is the same for any professional you engage, such as a doctor or a dentist. Therefore, let’s take a look at how much it may cost to hire a reputable family lawyer in Calgary.

 

Understanding The Cost Of A Family Lawyer In Calgary

 

When it comes to hiring family lawyers, there is, unfortunately, no schedule of fees that the lawyers follow. Fees are set by each lawyer and based on years of experience, whether they work in a small or large firm and even where their offices are located.

 

In Calgary, some lawyers choose to charge at an hourly rate that can range anywhere from $250 an hour to $650+ per hour. Others, meanwhile, may offer flat fees for certain types of services.  

 

Lawyers’ fees and retainers are typically discussed and established during your first meeting. It is at this time that you would sign a retainer agreement.

 

Ask yourself why you require a family lawyer. This may also influence the cost. Family law, by its nature, is complex and unpredictable, and the time it takes to reach a settlement or resolution with your former partner can vary greatly. Issues that simply require contracts and documents may perhaps cost less than those that necessitate several face-to-face meetings or Court applications. Naturally, the more time a family lawyer spends on a case, the more the cost will increase.

 

Why do lawyers cost that much?

 

Individuals often misconstrue how much time is actually spent on their case. While they may only meet with their lawyer for an hour each week, their family lawyer has been working diligently for hours, ensuring they are compiling and drafting all the information necessary to present the best case and achieve the best outcome for you.

 

Individuals also misunderstand what they are paying for when hiring a lawyer. It’s not like going into a car dealership, purchasing a car, and driving away with a tangible asset that can be touched. A lawyer’s work deals with intangibles – the thoughts, arguments, and case research to advance a case and obtain agreements, Court Orders, or Judgments. Occasionally, this does result in an individual clearly receiving a distribution of property or real estate, but, more often than not, it results in an entitlement to receive a benefit, such as parenting/access to children, child support, or spousal support.

 

It’s also important to remember that you’re not the only one making decisions. For every step you wish a lawyer to take, a former partner is also instructing their lawyer to take their own steps. This results in legal work to both advance your case and protect your interests from opposing steps; a conclusion to this process will be a complete resolution to your family dispute. Never be afraid to have ongoing discussions with your lawyer concerning your “game plan” and to help you understand the processes involved.

 

Family lawyers understand the emotional strain that comes with your case, and do their absolute best to minimize any stress and cost associated with it. 

 

If you are ever in a situation where you require legal assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to a family lawyer. The cost of a lawyer is more than made up by the competency and peace of mind they can offer you in navigating the legal system.

 

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.

We get it – going through a separation can be an emotionally taxing experience. Naturally, it only makes sense that you would want as smooth a process as possible. Being thoroughly informed about your options can take some of the uncertainty away, as you can anticipate what to expect and the steps you may need to take.

When it comes to family separation agreements in Calgary, there are several aspects you will want to consider. Let’s explore what they may entail, as well as how you can prepare an effective document.

Understanding Family Separation Agreements

What To Include in a Separation Agreement

A separation agreement is a legal contract between a couple that outlines how they have chosen to settle their issues. When referring to a couple, this can apply to partners who are either married, in a common-law relationship, or in an adult interdependent partnership.

As a note, you do not need a separation agreement to separate. However, clear communication and a written record of your decisions may prevent confusion down the road and help avoid potential court visits, which can be both expensive and time-consuming.

The Government of Canada recommends that a separation agreement include details such as:

• Living arrangements;
• How you’ll divide property;
• How you’ll divide debts;
• If spousal support will be paid;
• Custody of children;
• Parenting of children;
• Child support payments.

When referring to property, it can include:

• Joint or separate bank accounts;
• Registered Retirement Savings Plans;
• Tax-Free Savings Accounts;
• Your home and its contents;
• Second homes/recreational properties;
• Investments ;
• Canada Pension Plan ;
• Employer-sponsored pensions;
• Vehicles;
• Pets;
• Insurance plans.

When referring to debts, this can include:

• A mortgage;
• A personal loan or line of credit;
• Credit card debt;
• Vehicle loans.

It is recommended that you work to divide your finances sooner rather than later. In some provinces, you may lose your claim to a share of the property if you wait too long to make your claim following your separation.

Who Can Prepare a Separation Agreement?

Separation agreements can be drafted on your own, provided you understand what schedules need to be attached to be effective.  In all cases, however, both partners will require a certificate of independent advice to ensure each fully understands what they are signing and the legal ramifications of it. Including legal representation in the process and having them prepare the agreement is recommended. Family lawyers have years of experience handling such situations, so they are better able to understand what considerations you should make and what details should be included in the agreement.

Reputable family lawyers are able to provide impartial guidance while also showing kindness and empathy during such a difficult time in your life. If you are ever in need of a separation agreement in Calgary, a good lawyer will help make the decision-making process easier and ensure you are satisfied with the outcome.

There is a brighter future ahead with McLean Legal Family Lawyers. As your dynamic, multi-service family law firm in Calgary, McLean Legal Family Lawyers can offer you personalized legal services tailored to your particular circumstances. We endeavour to resolve matters quickly and with minimal conflict, offering calm, professional, and realistic advice. Given our years of experience in family law, we can assist with your child support, spousal support, divorce, mediation and separation agreements, as well as civil litigation issues, commercial/corporate services, and real estate transactions. With over 30 years of experience and success, we’re the Calgary family lawyers that offer you a brighter future. Book your free consultation by calling 587-353-2632.