All divorce proceedings originating from any province in Canada are governed by a federal law, the Divorce Act. This Act establishes that divorces in Canada are granted without consideration of the faults committed by the parties and solely on the basis that there has been a “breakdown of the marriage”. The breakdown of the marriage can take place any of these ways: either the couple has been living in separation for at least a year prior to the divorce, the spouses have committed adultery since the celebration of the marriage, or if a spouse has treated the other with mental or physical cruelty. 

Property Division

In Quebec, the Civil Code of Québec dictates that the formation of a marriage or a civil union leads to the creation of a family patrimony, dedicated to the accumulation and protection of certain properties that are deemed to be the family’s assets and debts that can be equally divided amongst the two spouses, and a matrimonial regime, which provides guidelines for the determination of ownership of the properties not included in the family patrimony and for the division of these properties if a divorce or legal separation ever occurs. If the spouses did not choose a specific matrimonial regime or if they did not make provisions for the division their property, other than those included in the family patrimony, in a notarized marriage contract, then the matrimonial regime applicable by default would be the partnership of acquests which potentially allows the spouses to each claim half of the other spouse’s property.

Under the partnership of acquests, the categorization of a property depends on how and when you obtained ownership of a property, and its value could be eligible to be claimed by your spouse in the case of a legal separation or a divorce. However, it is possible for the couple to have given their consent to adhere to the separation as to property regime which prevents any division of property, except for what is included in the family patrimony.

The determination of which properties can be divided and the value of these properties can be a tricky matter based on fact and proof. It is therefore important to let a qualified professionals take care of you through this process.

Alimony (Spousal Support)

The extent of alimony owed between spouses in Quebec varies greatly depending on the circumstances of each family and various other factors that may weigh in different proportions.

If you are considering getting a divorce, you must keep in mind that the Courts take into consideration the duration of the marriage, where longer marriages lead to longer support durations. The parties’ capacity to be financially self-fulfilling is also assessed by examining their respective needs, often influenced by their lifestyles, and means to fulfill those needs, as well as their age and state of health. Income disparity and the contributions of each spouse during the marriage are also considered, especially when their roles throughout the marriage potentially leaves one party in a state of financial instability, namely when most or all of the childcare responsibilities fell onto one and financial responsibilities fell onto the other.

Spouses may also come to an agreement on the amount, the duration and the method of payment of the spousal support either by mutual consent or with the help of legal professionals in a negotiation setting.