
Simon P. Valleau, LL.B.
Ecclestone, Hamer, Poisson, Neuwald & Freeman
10 Adelaide Street East, Suite 300, Toronto, Ontario
please call: 416-365-7135 Ext.30
Toronto divorce lawyers are very sensitive to the fact that the end of a relationship can be very stressful. Toronto divorce lawyers are trained to deal with financial crises, raw emotions, & custody issues. Your Toronto divorce lawyer is skilled in the arts of mediation & negotiation so that an adversarial situation can be avoided whenever possible. A divorce lawyer in Toronto can prepare pre-nuptial & separation agreements as well as representing you in proceedings for divorce, custody, access, maintenance, guardianship, & alimony. In Canada, Toronto divorce lawyers would like you to know that the grounds for divorce are that there has been a breakdown of the marriage or of course adultery.
Toronto divorce lawyers will advise you that divorce falls under the authority of the federal government. Your divorce lawyer in Toronto is well versed in the Divorce Act, which is a federal statute. When you are ready to begin divorce proceedings a Toronto divorce lawyer will file a Petition for Divorce. The person who has retained a Toronto divorce lawyer to ask for a divorce is called the Petitioner. The person being divorced is called the Respondent & he/she will also need to retain a Toronto divorce lawyer. You would be well advised to contact Toronto divorce lawyers for issues concerning children, assets, businesses, or financial need that may require support payments for one spouse or children. It is a very rare circumstance when you would be able to handle the situation with Toronto divorce lawyers.
Toronto divorce lawyers will advise that the grounds for divorce are that there has been a breakdown of the marriage. Breakdown of the marriage according to Toronto divorce lawyers may occur in several ways. The spouses have lived apart for at least one year before the divorce is finalized & were living apart at the time that Toronto divorce lawyers filed the divorce petition. Adultery was charged by Toronto divorce lawyers or there was physical or mental cruelty making it impossible for the couple to live together. If there is a charge of adultery or physical or mental cruelty Toronto divorce lawyers may file an application for divorce immediately.
Toronto divorce lawyers are very sensitive to the fact that divorce is very traumatic for the children. On occasion Toronto divorce lawyers are involved in protracted & ugly custody battles. Custody is a legal term that Toronto divorce lawyers use for the care & control of a minor child. Grandparents, step-parents, & common law parents hire Toronto divorce lawyers to apply for the custody of children.
Toronto divorce lawyers provide a referral service. Toronto divorce lawyers recommend that you make an appointment with several lawyers skilled in the practice of family law in order to make a determination on who you believe would best represent you & your family. There is no fixed hourly rate for Toronto divorce lawyers. One of the best ways to find a Toronto divorce lawyer is to ask for referrals from others who have been through a divorce & were pleased with the results. When hiring a lawyer that practices Toronto family law you must feel comfortable with your lawyer. There are people who choose to handle their divorce on their own but the majority will consult with Toronto divorce lawyers. Unfortunately the Toronto family is often in jeopardy & divorces can be very acrimonious & very costly.
Divorce applications are heard in federally appointed courts, not handled in Toronto family court. Toronto divorce lawyers will advise you that you must file a divorce petition with the Clerk of the Court. Toronto divorce lawyers suggest that you must either serve your husband/wife with the Petition for Divorce so that he/she gets a copy personally or get a judge to give you an order allowing you not to serve him or to serve him in some other way. If you have not seen your spouse in some time contact Toronto divorce lawyers. It will then be filed at the Court house and Toronto divorce lawyers will make an application to a judge for directions about what to do next. Your affidavit will prove that you really tried to find your spouse. Toronto divorce lawyers normally wait 30 days before acting.
If you are married, on a breakup of your relationship there is a presumption that each spouse in entitled to half of the matrimonial assets. Not all assets owned by the spouses, however, are matrimonial assets. Assets not used in the marriage may be excluded from the division according to Toronto divorce lawyers.
According to Toronto divorce lawyers the matrimonial assets are divided equally between the spouses. However the judge has the power to award an unequal division of assets in certain circumstances. Your Toronto divorce lawyers will advise that the assets may be divided unequally in order to promote the self-sufficiency of one of the spouses, or an unequal division favoring the spouse that brought the asset to the marriage. Toronto divorce lawyers can give valid legal advice on how best to achieve the division of property you believe fair following the breakup of a marriage.
Toronto divorce lawyers advise that the Divorce Act only applies to legally married persons. It does not apply to common-law couples. Toronto divorce lawyers want you to be aware that it does not matter how long a couple has lived together in a common-law relationship they do not qualify under the Divorce Act.
If you are a legally married couple seeking a remedy for a failed marriage contact Toronto divorce lawyers.