Is the wedding ring my wife gave me a family asset that she has a share of?

In all likelihood your ring will not be classed as a "family asset." Firstly, the ring is an item of jewellery, which usually counts as personal property that you are entitled to keep. Secondly, your wife gave you the ring as a gift. Gifts are not usually divisible family assets.

I want to transfer some land owned by my family in which I hold a one fifth undivided interest to protect the interests of my son. Does my wife have any right to the land and house if it came to me by inheritance? (by G of Powell River, BC)

If my common law spouse of 4 years has won a lottery of over $500,000.00, is this considered a "family asset"? Can my ex, who has custody of our two teen children, claim any part of these winnings or simply ensure post secondary education costs? (by R of Coquitlam, BC)

I'm in the process of separating from my husband I'm due to recieve an inheritance very soon. Is my husband entitled to half of this money? (by K of Maple Ridge, BC)

I own a large quantity of shares in a privatly held business that I helped get of the ground. Will my wife get 50% of them? She had no input into the creation of this business nor did she contribute any money. Is this a family asset or a business asset? (by S of Cyberspace, BC)

My cousin and her brother own a business operating a rental property and a house that they inherited. The company pays each a monthly dividend and the house is rented and pays each a monthly draw. They own the house as tenants in common. The brother and his wife are getting divorced. I need to know if she can get any shares or has any claim to the value of the real estate in the company. (by Anonymous of Cyberspace, BC)

I think my husband has a secret bank account, but I don't know where it is or how much he's put into it. How can I stop him from spending it or moving it out of the country?

Your best bet to protect this asset is to get a restraining Order under s. 67 of the Family Relations Act. A restraining Order for assets that are within British Columbia restrains not only the assets but the person, in the sense that your husband will be personally restrained from disposing of "family assets or other assets at issue." You should make a reference to this secret account in your application materials to ensure that the account falls within the meaning of "other assets at issue."

My husband and I have been seperated for 6 months. I am afraid he is going to find some way to make sure I don't get any money from the family home because my name is not on the title of the house. Can he sell it out from me? To another family member, so that it looks like he no longer owns it? (by C of Cyberspace, BC)

I want to transfer some land owned by my family in which I hold a one fifth undivided interest to protect the interests of my son. Does my wife have any right to the land and house if it came to me by inheritance? (by G of Powell River, BC)

Can he sell the car before the divorce is finalized? What steps can I take to prevent him from doing that? (by G of Cyberspace, ON)

When my husband and I separated, I signed a form to take my name off of the title to our home since I was the one who was leaving and my husband was "buying" me out. We have since attempted reconciliation and I moved back in. Things are rocky and he is contemplating leaving and divorce this time. Have I given up my right to 50% of the house and property by signing that form when we had first separated? (by L of Abbotsford, BC)

My brother and I have owned a house since 1992. We are both on title. My brother continued to reside in the property we own together, and, when he married, he lived there with his wife. He has filed for divorce and she is suing him for part of the house. My brother and I had verbally decided that when we sold the house, I would get 75% because I had contributed much more than him. How can I protect my interest in the property? Can my brother and I do a written agreement now? (by J of Surrey, BC)

A recent JCC consent order states my wife is at liberty to list for sale a property we both have an interest in but is registered in her name only. She has to discuss and advise me of anything to do with the sale and we have to agree, rather than her having sole conduct of the sale. Can I file a CPL against the property in case she ignores my input and sells? (by G of Vancouver, BC)

Is there any way I can keep our family home for myself when my divorce action goes to trial?

Firstly, make sure that your lawyer makes it clear that you want to retain the family home for yourself. Secondly, remember that your spouse has an interest in the house too. Whether or not you will be able to keep the house depends on the value of the house, the value of the family assets and how much money you have. If your spouse doesn't want to keep the house for his- or herself, you should be able to work something out where you buy your spouse out of the house by paying your spouse the value of his or her interest in the house. Whether this money comes from your own money or from allowing your spouse to have other family assets equivalent in value of his or her interest in the house will depend on your particular circumstances. There is nothing in principle preventing you from keeping the home.

Family Assets

I have a registered divorce order within which is a clause regarding a vested pension split. My ex has not completed this requirement and does not respond to my request, in writing, to do so. How do I get back to Court to request the Court to enforce the order? (by P of Bowen Island, BC)

My wife and I have been living separate and apart for more than a year. In that year I have been solely responsible for maintaining and paying for our house. I understand that all equity up until the time of separation is equally shared but does she have the right to equity I have added as a result of her leaving? (by D of Surrey, BC)

My wife left me in March 1999. I bought the home we had been renting in September 2000. Does she have a legal share in my home in Kamloops for division of assets purposes? She is not on the title for the house and the mortgage does not mention her as an interested party to the mortgage. She has registered a Lis Pendens on this home as of June 2001. So, is she entitled to a share in it if sold? (by S of Kamloops, BC)

My spouse and I separated almost a year ago. He is living in the family home and up until recently, we each drew from a shared bank account. He is living in our $500,000 family home and I live in a rented mobile. He makes approximately $30,000 more per year than I do and I am finding it hard to make ends meet while he seems to be doing quite well. Is there anything governing the mortgage vs. income levels? (by B of Maple Ridge, BC)

If a husband refuses to maintain a steady job and will not contribute to any family expenses, and he is not on the mortgage documents and has not contributed to any savings, is he entitled to 50% of the assets? (by L of Langley, BC)

My husband and I were together for almost thirty years, married for the last twenty. I quit my teaching career path to move to the wilderness with him and raised three children while he worked. Since then he's sold his equipment. Will he be able to take my house? (by J of Prince George, BC)

My father has been married for six months. After they married he found they were not compatible. Does she have any legal right to any of his money or property? What are my dad's obligations? (by C of Kamloops, BC)

I entered the marriage with $60,000 of equity in a condominium which we used to purchase our house. She entered the marriage with a $10,000 student loan which I paid off with savings I had. I understand that the presumption is 50/50 for family assets. Do I have a case for a larger share of the family home equity and the trailer? (by K of Enderby, BC)

If a house is jointly owned and one spouse wishes to remain there should the other spouse be responsible for 50% of the real estate fees that would have been incurred had the property been sold? (by D of Abbotsford, BC)

My husband (we are separated) is now living with another woman. I understand after a certain period of time she will have certain rights & claims to his assets. Am I entitled to part of his pension? What about future inheritances? (by C of Port Coquitlam, BC)

My husband and I are starting to negotiate a separation agreement, and we don't know how to handle the share options we are entitled to exercise with his employer. (by A of Port Coquitlam, BC)

My wife has left me after 20 yrs. We have two children. During our marriage, she was the breadwinner and I was "Mr. Mom." Since she left for another man, she hasn't supported us. I found out that she won a bingo lottery. Will what she's done affect the division of assets? (by G of Richmond, BC)

About my Employee pension plan, I had 10 years service when we married and 20 years of marriage. I plan to retire in 5 years. It is my understanding that my ex will be entitled to an apportionment i.e 20/35 of 50% of my pension when I retire. Is this negotiable since I was the prime care-giver for the boys for most of the time and the marriage did not compromise her career in any way? (by L of Coquitlam, BC)

My wife left me 2 years ago. Now she would like her half of the equity of our house. Is she entitled to half the equity as of when she left, or is she entitled to half of today's value even though she has not paid anything towards the mortgage, taxes or repairs? (by D of Delta, BC)

Family Debts

My wife and I purchased a car a year ago. The car was bought in her name but the loan for it was in both of ours. Can I transfer the remainder of the loan into her name and have mine taken off? (by B of Delta, BC)

Three years ago, I made alot of money and loaned a fair sum to my husband's business, of which I am neither a shareholder nor a director. Three weeks after we separated, he sold the homes, spent the money and never paid me a dime back. I was destitute. Can I include this information in my claim and ask the judge to order a lump sum or periodic payment to me? (by D of Kelowna, BC)

My separated spouse and I have several debts, a line of credit and a consolidation loan in both our names which make up the bulk of the debt, and several credit cards in his name alone with minor debts, nothing else joint. How do we divide them? (by D of Vancouver, BC)

I've heard that the banks/creditors go after the person who can actually pay (in this case me) no matter what the legal agreement says. If so, how do I avoid this? (by A of Victoria, BC)

My girlfriend and I started living together as students. I graduated a year ago and have found a good job; I've been paying for most of our expenses since then. She's still at school. We've just separated, after living togther for five years. We bought a few things together, like Ikea furniture, which we've already divided. I'm worried because I have way more things than she does, a good computer, a stereo, some artwork and a bunch of CDs. I bought these things out of my own pocket and from student loans. Does she have a claim against my stuff?

Probably not. Remember that there must be an unjust enrichment and a corresponding deprivation. From what you've described, she probably benefitted more from the relationship than you did. Unless she contributed in some way to the purchase of your property, she probably doesn't have a claim to it.

I've been in a same-sex relationship for the last ten years. Can I make a claim for the division of assets?

Absolutely. The courts in British Columbia have recognized that same-sex couples are just equally entitled to the benefit of the common law and equity for almost two decades. Whether you have a good claim under the law of constructive or resulting trusts is another matter, but there is nothing stopping you from having access to the same remedies available to people in straight relationships.

I am in a common law relationship with my partner. I have been engaged to be married to him for 2 years. We have been together for over five years and living consistantly together for almost 2 years. Everything is legally in his name. Would I be entitled to anything? (by D of Coquitlam, BC)

My partner and I have been together for 8 years and have three children. We are now in the separation process. Has she the right to half of my share in the house? (by B of Richmond, BC)

I am an American on a temporary work visa and have been living with my Canadian boyfriend for 1.5 years in BC. When we separate, is he entitled to any of my assets? (by T of Cyberspace, BC)

What is the law on occupation rent when one person in a short common-law relationship leaves the home and the other stays in the home and pays for all the mortgage and expenses? The person who left uses the old residence to do his laundry, do business and generally hangs around for 3 or 4 days a week. When the home is sole are the proceeds divided 50/50 or is there a recovery of expenses? (by C of Vancouver, BC)

I have lived with my exgirlfriend for about 2 years, and we have now seperated. We both payed rent for this month. I am chosing to keep the apartment. After this month is over, if any of her things are still there can I get rid of them, or is there a law against this? (by J of Chilliwack, BC)

I recently found out my husband has been cheating, he says that we will live in the same house as roomates until out daughter graduates from high school. I would like to know how to go about getting him out of the house. He has become very verbally abusive, and is telling out daughter things that he shouldn't be. What do I have to do to get him out of the house? (by N of Attica, NY, USA)

My husband and have been separated for over 2 years. We have no formal separation agreement. We agreed the family house was mine and he would carry the mortgage until I could get one; I have this in writing. He is refusing to show me the mortgage statements or property assessment. I have been paying everything since we split up. Do I need to get a lawyer to make him hand these papers over or can I go in front of judge on my own? (by C of Robson, BC)

My wife and I purchased a house while we were still together as a revenue property. If I stay in the revenue house as my main residence does she have acess to the family home? (by A of Vancouver, BC)

Am I obligated to sell a home with two teenaged boys still going to school and intentions on university if my wife files for divorce? I am perfectly happy in the house and the boys need a stable environment. Am I forced to sell it at this juncture? (by L of Coquitlam, BC)

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