Areas of Practice | Family Law - Holness & Small Law Group

Going through a separation or a divorce may be one of the most difficult and challenging events in your life. Our experienced lawyers at Holness and Small Law Group provide a full range of legal services to assist individuals and families with all aspects of family law. We focus on supporting you through the process while offering individualized legal services and advice based on your own unique situation and needs.

We are proud to be one of the most diverse law firms in British Columbia offering inclusive legal representation to all types of families (single parents, couples and multi-parent families) of all genders and sexual orientations.

Separation and Divorce

Separation occurs when at least one spouse indicates clearly that they want to end the relationship and begin living independently. Living independently can occur in the same home or a different residence.

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Parenting After Separation or Divorce

When parents separate and divorce, they must make decisions and reach agreements regarding the care of their children. When they cannot agree, the courts can then become involved to make decisions for them. Both the federal Divorce Act and the provincial Family Law Act govern issues relating to the care of children.

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Spousal Support

Spousal support payments are made by one spouse to the other after separation or divorce. Spousal support is available to married couples and unmarried common law couples. There are different ways to pay spousal support such as through a one-time lump sum payment or on a monthly basis.

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Child Support

Parents have the legal responsibility to financially support their children. Child support refers to payments relating to expenses associated with raising children. The goal of child support is to maintain or to improve the living conditions of the child by requiring one parent to make payment to the other parent who has the main parenting responsibilities.

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Dividing Family Property, Assets and Debt

The British Columbia Family Law Act deals with the division of property and debt between married and unmarried spouses. It is presumed that spouses will keep property and debt that they each brought into the relationship and that they will share the property and debt acquired during their relationship.

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Family Law Agreements

Family law agreements are an important consideration for spouses and parents. They are effective tools in resolving existing disputes and in avoiding potential disputes from arising in the future. Family law agreements can be flexible and based on particular circumstances and needs. Often, they are considered more cost effective compared to seeking an order through a legal proceeding in court.

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Reproduction Agreements

Many families are created through the use of assisted reproduction, surrogacy or donors (sperm and egg). This includes queer and trans people, single parents, and heterosexual couples requiring fertility assistance. We recognize and appreciate the incredible work and commitment involved when creating a family through fertility assistance and we are here to support you on your journey to parenthood.

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