Uncontested Divorce

If you are looking to avoid litigation while ending your marriage or common-law partnership, an uncontested divorce is what you want. Affordable and simple, it’s a far less frustrating way to end your marriage and does not have to involve disputes or arguments that could elongate the process. To secure an uncontested divorce, both spouses must agree on the terms of the divorce which are to be negotiated privately and outside of court.

 

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Why choose an uncontested divorce?

The two primary reasons to choose an uncontested divorce are that it does less damage to your family and it’s far more affordable. Couples wanting to divorce or separate should first try to negotiate what separation looks like before deciding that court is the only option. Using a mediator or going for arbitration with a lawyer by their side can save time and money. You avoid litigation and trials with an uncontested divorce, and it also preserves any remaining goodwill that there may be between parties.

How can we help?

Simple Divorce are experts at uncontested divorce. We will meet with you, explain what alternative dispute resolutions are available, and help you arrive at a separation agreement that suits your needs. It might not be easy. In a divorce, complex issues can persist with high financial stakes but if you can, it’s a lot easier to work it out outside of the courts. Although you don’t need a lawyer to apply for an uncontested divorce, for a lot of couples, understandably they both want their legal rights and obligations upheld. Sometimes it can help a lot to bring a family lawyer into the mix. Our divorce lawyers are there to minimize the usual challenges and will work hard to resolve matters in the best way possible. You don’t have to go through an uncontested divorce alone.

Contested Divorce Litigation

The ‘uncontested’ part of a divorce is often the agreement that both parties want to divorce. Where things become contested is when there is a division of property, division of debt, custody of children, and if there is a question of child support or spousal support owed.

Once you have gone through the 1-year separation period and assuming you qualify for a divorce at that time, if you cannot agree with your former partner on the issues above, you could end up in front of a judge where they will make the decision. This is what a contested divorce is. It puts these issues at the mercy and judgment of the courts, opening yourself up to drastically increased expenses and a lot of time that will have to go into protecting your rights and ensuring you receive what is owed.

Contested divorce: Steps involved

  • Prepare and file in the courthouse your divorce petition. In this petition, it will state the request for divorce and the grounds on which the marriage has broken down.
  • Serve the divorce petition to the other spouse. The other spouse is required to provide a response to the petition.
  • Ideally, at this stage, you want to hire a legal team of divorce lawyers in Newmarket to look over your case and represent you in court.
  • Assist with information gathering in the lead-up to the court hearings, with the assistance and guidance of your lawyer.
  • Pre-trail hearing and motions.
  • Settlement proposals are submitted by your lawyer and your former spouse’s lawyer. If the settlement is not agreed upon, you begin preparing for trial.
  • During the court trial, both parties are required to attend the hearings.
  • The court grants out the divorce order, ruling on all matters, which can be appealed if there is a dispute over the judge’s decision.

Preparing for court trial

In many cases, couples are unable to resolve their disagreements in the settlement phase. If there is no resolution, the unavoidable next step is to find yourself in court. At trial, each party’s lawyer will present a closing argument and cross-examine witnesses. At that point, the judge makes their ruling and a final order is made to finalize the contested divorce. When you enter into a court trial, it is imperative for your lawyer to be ready to vigorously fight for your rights. Hire a knowledgeable, expert divorce lawyer in Newmarket that you know you can trust.

Separation Agreement

A separation agreement is what is used to define each party’s legal rights and obligations when their divorce is granted and the marriage is declared legally over. The assets and responsibilities are outlined and divided. Parenting and support arrangements are also detailed in a separation agreement. For couples who want to divorce but who do not wish to engage in a potentially lengthy court battle will often use a separation agreement. It is, of course, important to have a divorce lawyer review the document prior to signing to ensure your rights are being respected.
Reasons for a separation agreement

If you have lived together as a couple for some time, understandably, you have shared roles and responsibilities. In a divorce, everything is divided. While things like pension income or the cost of post-secondary education for your child, as examples, would have been co-managed before, in a divorce, it is often unclear who is owed what. A separation agreement is for these exact occasions, formally addressing these details. Why it’s important is that it forces a divorcing couple to have several necessary conversations in how to divide up these roles and responsibilities, and avoids misunderstandings that could end up in court in the future.

When should you use a separation agreement?

Treat a separation agreement like a precursor to divorce or even an alternative. Let’s say, you are in a couple that doesn’t meet the legal requirements for a divorce. A separation agreement is your alternative. Or if you want to vastly minimize the costs of going through a divorce, this document is how you will divide assets and responsibilities. It settles a number of issues and disputes between both spouses, setting out how they will be handled in clear legal terms. Should your separation become a divorce, your separation agreement can also act as evidence as to when you separated and also act as a basis for how assets and responsibilities will be divided in a more formal court setting. To this latter point, courts have discretionary power to overturn a separation agreement that is deemed not legally binding so it does not necessarily guarantee a specific outcome as it relates to divorce proceedings.

Foreign Divorce Opinion Letter

A foreign divorce opinion letter is used when you want to get married in Canada, however, you or your spouse has previously divorced outside of Canada. This legal document is considered in the Canadian courts as to your validation of foreign divorce. It is treated as evidence that you or your spouse are not married to another party in another country, verifying there is a divorce and that those proceedings are concluded. For someone previously married in a foreign jurisdiction, a foreign divorce opinion letter is required before a Canadian marriage license can be issued to the applicant.

Is a foreign divorce considered valid in Canada?

Some applicants are surprised to learn that their foreign divorce is not valid in Canada. There are several factors used to determine whether a foreign divorce can be certified or not. Our divorce lawyers in Newmarket are happy to review your file to help determine if you qualify, analyzing the circumstances of the divorce and examining foreign divorce decrees that also have to be notarized and translated before applying for a marriage certificate.

Make the process easy on yourself. A divorce lawyer can help you gather the documents you need to submit to the Office of the Registrar General, including the marriage license application signed by both parties, the original divorce translated into either English or French, a statement of sole responsibility signed by each party, and, lastly, the foreign divorce opinion letter.

Fortunately, we have helped many, many people with foreign divorce opinion letters in the past. Signed by a licensed Ontario lawyer, a foreign divorce opinion letter will allow you to move forward with your hopes to re-marry and to be granted a marriage certificate in Canada.

Family Lawyer Newmarket

For an individual or a family, going through a divorce can be very emotional and stressful. It can lead to negative thoughts and feelings of being overwhelmed with the situation, as you try to jump through the hoops that are a very complex divorce system. Let us help.

A family lawyer in Newmarket is there to make things a little easier. Have your divorce proceedings simplified. Have an experienced professional take over and help you prepare documents while advising you on how to move forward to maximize your protections and get what is rightfully owed to you.

Furthermore, for heated issues relating to a property, child custody, child support, or spousal support, our family lawyer is prepared and ready to fight on your behalf.

Receive a comprehensive strategy on how to best approach your divorce circumstances with a family lawyer in Newmarket.