Watson Goepel is thrilled to announce that six of our lawyers have been recognized in Best Lawyers in Canada™ 2026 and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch™ in 2026 for their remarkable success and excellence in their area of expertise.
The BC Court of Appeal recently dealt with the legal nature of survivor pension benefits and how they may be effectively waived in a separation agreement between spouses in Tarr Estate v. Tarr, 2014 BCCA 315.
If your relationship has unfortunately come to an end and a separation or divorce is being contemplated, you likely have a host of questions regarding your personal finances and how they may change once the separation is finalized. In this blog post we’ll explore the “Canada Child Tax Benefit” and discuss who gets to claim this benefit in the event of a separation or divorce.
After the introduction of the Family Law Act last year, Part 4, Division 6 of the FLA introduced new obligations for guardians seeking to relocate where there is an existing (final) order or agreement respecting parenting arrangements or contact with a child. The legislation was also supposed to clarify the factors that a court must take into account when considering relocation applications.
Family lawyer Craig Neville reviews parenting concepts that came into effect with the enactment of BC’s Family Law Act and the interpretation assistance offered by the BC Supreme Court in Hansen v. Mantei-Hansen, 2013 BCSC 876.
In M.H. v. C.S., 2013 BCSC 2232, the BC Supreme Court reviews the threshold test for firing a parenting coordinator and addresses a number of other parenting issues.
This week, one of the family lawyers in our office was inquiring about the availability of judges at the New Westminster registry of the BC Supreme Court. He needed a one day hearing on a family law matter and he was advised that for the last five months of 2013 there were only two days available!
The new Family Law Act has, at its core, the promotion of dispute resolution through means other than the court. One of the foundational needs in resolution of family conflicts is full disclosure of a party’s finances.
Many parents have described to me how their ex-spouse is the inferior parent; he or she doesn’t buy organic, eats dinner in front of the television, watches two and a half men and doesn’t make the child floss before bed. At this point, there may already have been heated discussions between the parents on this subject, with liberal use of the phrase “sole custody”. These attitudes can also find their way into otherwise routine communications between parents.
On March 18, 2013, BC’s family law is changing. If you are not married but have been living with your partner for more than two years, or you are not married but you and your partner have a child, these changes could affect you.
Real Estate practitioners on both the transaction side and the litigation side should take note of the recent decision in Malek v. Tanbakookar, 2012 BCSC 1742 (CanLII) where Mr. Justice Armstrong decided a summary trial application in favour of a defendant purchaser represented by Jeremy West of Watson Goepel LLP.
