Top BCCA Case Summaries with Counsel Comments Please click here for the April issue of BC Take Five, summarizing what they have selected as the five most interesting cases from the British Columbia Court of Appeal in March. This Month’s Cases: Family Law; Separation Agreement; Enforceability; Repudiation Property Law; Squatter’s Rights; Adverse Possession Employment […]
Mediation as a way for people to resolve conflict informally, in a private setting, and without the usual animosity (and bitter after-taste) associated with going to court. A Mediator is a ‘neutral’ person in the process (impartial, with no stake in the outcome) who is specially-trained to help people resolve conflict by facilitating communications between […]
Lawyers are also Notaries Public. Here at Hillside Law, we’ve got you covered when it comes to Okanagan notaries. Getting a document notarized means having your signature witnessed by a Notary Public to prove the document is genuine and that you signed it of your own free will, without duress. It means you want the […]
Areas of Law: Family Law; Child Support; Spousal Support; Arrears In determining whether child support arrears should be cancelled, the court must consider whether there has been a material change in circumstances and whether it would be grossly unfair not to cancel the arrears. This is a distinct test from the one to apply in […]
Know Your Options Pension plan members can choose between different options for survivor benefits. In BC, a plan member with a spouse must take a pension that pays a survivor benefit to the spouse if the member dies first (unless the spouse gives up that right by signing a prescribed form). After a separation, a […]
In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that mandatory minimum sentences for possessing a loaded, prohibited, or restricted firearm can constitute cruel and unusual punishment, rendering those specific minimums unconstitutional. Section 95 of the Criminal Code imposes severe restrictions and strict licensing, registration, transportation, and storage rules on two specific classes of […]
The federal Divorce Act sets out the rules for spousal support for married couples who get divorced. The Divorce Act applies across Canada (whereas each province has its own laws for dealing with couples in common-law relationships and for married couples who separate but who are not divorced). Under the Divorce Act spousal support is […]
Canada’s Truth in Sentencing Act became law in February 2010. It changed the law regarding how much credit can be given for time spent in custody before a person gets sentenced. Judges used to have a fair bit of discretion, and typically gave double (or 2-for-1) credit based on considerations such as the fact that […]
R. v. Kovich, [2013] MJ No. 417, dealt with the provisions of the Criminal Code and the Truth in Sentencing Act dealing with bail and credit for pre-sentence custody. This appeal challenged the validity of s. 719(3.1) of the Criminal Code, which arguably prohibits a sentencing judge from giving enhanced credit for pre-sentence (remand) custody […]
