Ontario Family Law Podcast

This episode of the Family Law Podcast is the second in a series that goes over the Ontario Family Court Process step by step.  In this episode, John goes over all the steps after filing the initial court documents (pleadings) up to the last step before trial.  There are several mandatory steps in family court proceedings starting with the Mandatory Information Session and ending with th...

This is episode of the Family Law Podcast is the first of a series that goes over the Ontario Family Court Process step by step.  In this episode, John goes over how to start, or respond to a family court proceeding.  This is more complicated that it may first seem.  You have to make sure you in the right court and then you have to file, and serve, all of the right documents.  ...

This episode of the Family Law Podcast discusses the basics of Spousal Support in Ontario and in Canada.  The starting point when talking about spousal support is entitlement.  If a spouse is not entitled to spousal support, then there is no further discussion of how much or how long.  This podcast explains how a spouse becomes entitled to support - both the legal barriers to spousa...

Parents and even Grandparents can find themselves on the hook for child support in Canada. This is episode of the Ontario Family Law Podcast explains how that happens.  The basic premise of child support is that it is paid by all parents to a child.  But, a child can have more than two parents.  When parents or step parents step into the role of parents, they may step into paying ch...

This episode of the Family Law Podcast is all about child support's special and extraordinary expenses.  Parents share those expenses on top of base child support, so it is important for them to understand how this component of child support works.  This podcast explains what special expenses are and what extraordinary expenses are.  It also explains how parents calculate how much o...

This episode of the Family Law Podcast discusses the basics of Child Support in Ontario and in Canada.  It starts with who pays, and then moves on to explain how much child support should be paid by going over the calculation. There is more than one component to child support.  There is both base child support and contributions to special and extraordinary expenses.  This podcast ex...

This episode was a special live recording of a Valentines Day discussion of Family Law Issues.  In light of the day, the topic of discussion was how your heart can get you into financial trouble under Ontario Family Law. The discussion starts with a brief explanation of how property division works.  It then moves on how property division works differently for matrimonial home and how tha...

When married couples separate in Ontario, they don't just have to separate their lives.  They have to separate their finances. One of the main reasons people see Ontario Divorce Lawyers is to help figure out how to divide up their assets and liabilities after they separate. This is episode of the Family Law Podcast discusses how property is divided in Ontario after a marriage.  Many peop...

This episode, hosted by John Schuman, the head of the Family Law Group at Devry Smith Frank LLP, discusses how spouse know they are separated and what steps they have to take first.  It explores some of the initial issues that spouses, or unmarried partners, face at the end of their relationship. Those first decisions after separating can have a profound impact on the rest of the lives of eac...

This episode is about the important issue of "custody of the children."  What does that term really mean?  The legal meaning is very different from what most people think. Is it important to have custody?  What is the difference between sole custody and joint custody?  When is sole or joint custody appropriate?  This podcast answers all of these important questions.  ...

This episode of the Ontario Family Law Podcast discusses how a self employed person’s income for support can be much different, usually higher, than what that person shows on their tax return.  This is the case even when the self employed person is being entirely honest on his or her tax return.  Self- employed people are taxed differently from people on salary,  and so they are tre...

John Schuman, the host of the Ontario Family Law Podcast, is a recognized expert in the area of getting the voice of children before the courts, mediators and arbitrators. This “recorded live” episode is about children and how much say they should get in the separation and divorce process.  More specifically, it looks at how big a role children should play in the decision about where they liv...

This episode on the enforceability of Ontario marriage contracts (called “pre-nups” in the United States) was recorded live at intimate and interactive discussion of family law issues.  This episode contains critical information for anyone who may need a marriage contract or cohabitation agreement: how to make that contract enforceable.  It goes over the basic rules for making a marriage...

This episode discusses divorce. What does it mean to be divorced?  Who can get divorced? How do you get a divorce?  What does a spouse have to prove to be divorced?  Why might a judge refuse to grant a divorce?  This podcast contains critical information for people who want to get divorced or remarry. Being divorced is different from being separated.  Also, while a divorce...

There was a time when getting divorced meant going to court.  Going to court meant fighting it out.  However, that fight did not work out well for many families.  It almost never worked out well for the children.  It certainly did not make any sense with "no fault divorces" that recognized that sometimes people just grew apart and divorce was not always the result of someone ac...