On behalf of Gary Kirk of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Collaborative Law on Sunday, May 31, 2015. Alternative dispute resolution processes are recommended for divorcing spouses in Alberta because these processes tend to be the most cost-efficient, least adversarial way of ending a marriage or common law relationship. …
Choosing ADR can protect children from conflict during separation and divorce
On behalf of Gary Kirk of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Divorce Mediation on Saturday, April 25, 2015. In the last few decades, the rate of divorce in Canada has fluctuated between 35 per cent and 42 per cent. When couples who are not married are taken into account, …
How is child support calculated in Alberta?
On behalf of Gary Kirk of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Family Law on Saturday, April 18, 2015. By law, children are entitled to support from both of their parents, and child support laws in Canada are guided by this principle. When parents separate or divorce, they can come …
Do I need a written custody and parenting plan?
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Divorce Mediation on Friday, December 5, 2014. If you and your co-parent are separating or divorcing in Alberta, then you have options as to how you come to an agreement about a parenting plan. Your agreement doesn’t have to be put …
Push for unified family court ramps up in Alberta
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Family Law on Friday, November 21, 2014. Alberta remains one of only four Canadian jurisdictions where family law matters are divided between the lower and superior courts, while the other nine jurisdictions have some kind of unified family court. In Alberta, …
Eschewing the term ‘divorce’ as Canadian marriages change
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Collaborative Law on Friday, April 18, 2014. Go back 60 years and the idea of marriage was relatively uniform: a man and a woman would marry, often in their 20s; have children; and remain married until one spouse died. Of course, …
How does Alberta collaborative law work?
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Collaborative Law on Friday, November 7, 2014. Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is an increasingly popular way for separating spouses and partners to resolve their family law disputes in a non-adversarial setting. We recently discussed three effective ADR processes — collaborative law, …
3 effective ADR options for divorcing spouses
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Divorce Mediation on Friday, October 10, 2014. For spouses who have chosen to separate, alternative dispute resolution — ADR — can be an efficient and cost-effective way of coming to an agreement on matters such as child custody, spousal support and …
Divorce doesn’t have to be a battle
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Collaborative Law on Friday, August 29, 2014. Here are some common assumptions about divorce: it has to be acrimonious; it has to be litigious; it has to be expensive; it has to be time-consuming; it has to compromise your dignity. While …
Is it ever too late to settle divorce matters out of court?
On behalf of Kirk Montoute Dawson LLP posted in Divorce Mediation on Saturday, August 9, 2014. If you are going through a divorce or separation, at any point in the process you can choose a method of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Through arbitration, mediation or collaborative law, couples can reach …