This paper offers practical tips for providing legal advice to clients who separate while facing job loss and decreased financial opportunities. It explores topics such as who bears responsibility for financial burdens, income determination for self-employed individuals, imputing income, and how support obligations are influenced by retirement or perpetual student status. This paper is part of a collection presented at LESA’s 52^nd Annual Refresher: Family Law program in Lake Louise on May 5–7, 2019.  

This paper provides a brief overview of the arguments for and against including children in the alternative dispute resolution process. The paper also outlines process options for including children’s perspectives and offers a summary of additional resources for further consideration. This paper is part of a collection presented at LESA’s 52^nd Annual Refresher: Family Law program in Lake Louise on May 5–7, 2019.  

This paper aims to aid those seeking to understand the framework through which inter-jurisdictional parental disputes over custody are resolved within Canada and internationally. A number of complexities arising from the non-consensual cross-border relocation of children are analyzed, including whether the parents are married or not, the inconsistency of provincial laws, the interpretations of key provisions, what happens when a foreign respondent disputes jurisdiction, and the relevance of The Hague Convention. Combining elements of family, enforcement, and international law, this paper provides a succinct yet detailed overview of the various issues that arise in the context of inter-jurisdictional custody disputes. This paper is part of a collection presented at LESA’s 50^th Annual Refresher in Lake Louise from May 7–9^th, 2017.  

This paper seeks to address the following questions that challenge both junior family law counsel and senior practitioners: How can lawyers juggle various files while keeping their practice moving forward while, at the same time, minimizing stress and having a life outside of the office? Divided into sections, this paper discusses important topics such as planning a career, client service, and time management. This paper was presented at the 46th Annual Family Law Refresher in April of 2013.  

This paper distinguishes between pre-nuptial, post-nuptial and cohabitation agreements and offers the reader a primer on what you can and cannot achieve in these types of agreements. The author discusses the options available for addressing property division and spousal support, and clarifies the limitations of these agreements to address child issues such as support and custody and access. In particular, the author offers some practical considerations related to independent legal advice and disclosure requirements. This paper was drawn from materials presented at the Cohabitation and Pre-Nuptial Agreements program held in May 2012.