Simplified procedure is available
Modifications to the Divorce Act keep available the regular Court procedure when it comes to applications for support order or variations of such an order. Yet there is now another, simplified procedure, which will not require an applicant from one province to go before the Court of another, where the debtor (respondent) lives. This simplified procedure also reflects the reality where the applicant might not even know where to look for the debtor.
Steps to make
If this simplified procedure is used, a spouse (ex-spouse) applying for support, could do it in his (her) own province without even sending a notice to the other party. The Court in the province of the applicant would verify the documents and information and send the application to the Court in another province where the debtor lives (to the best of the applicant’s knowledge). The Court office in this another province would serve the debtor with a copy of the application altogether with a notice explaining how to respond and what documents to provide. The procedure is governed by the law of this province.
If the Court office were unable to serve the application and the notice, it could either return documents to the original province or, if there is information about the current whereabouts of the debtor in some other province, send the application to the Court office of that other province.
Important to know, the information about serving the documents on the debtor won’t be notified to the applicant. The idea is that the applicant, if provided all the necessary documents, rarely needs to attend the hearing. So, if the applicant chooses this simplified procedure, he (she) accepts that the hearing might be held in his (her) absence.
There is still a way to indicate in the application that the applicant would want to participate in the proceedings via technical means of telecommunication.
If an applicant wants necessarily to be notified and to participate in person, the old way of a regular Court procedure is still available.
If, living in this province, the debtor would not respond to the notice, the Court may hear the application and make orders if it finds the evidence to be sufficient.
Decision-making
If the Court needed additional evidence or other documents, the hearing could be adjourned (until another date), and the Court could make an interim order. Then the Court office will request the evidence needed from the authorities in the original province of the applicant. The authorities there will contact the applicant and ask for the missing evidence. The evidence may also be obtained via teleconference or by affidavit, according to the Court rules. If no evidence is received within a year, the Court may dismiss the application and terminate the interim order. The applicant may apply again later, though.
When the application is made in one province, and the debtor is in fact living in another province, the Court may convert the original application into an inter-provincial one to follow the simplified procedure described.
Also, an inter-provincial application might be directed to a provincial child support service, an administrative body. Such a body has powers now to make a decision to calculate or recalculate the amount of child support based on the updated income information of the parties.
These simplified rules are meant to make it less costly and complicated for a spouse to get support money. The regular procedure, as everyone knows, is not easy to follow, not to mention the costs.
These changes into the Divorce Act are not in force yet. They were meant to become in force on July 1, 2020, but in the circumstances it is not clear if this date will be observed. If you have questions, do not hesitate to contact our office for a consultation by phone: 514-816-4150 or via email: [email protected].
Lawyers of Allen Madelin are recognized to be among the best divorce lawyers in Montreal. They defend their clients’ interests vigorously and with commitment in divorce, separation, spousal support, child support payment and custody cases. They also offer education on the important implications of the recent changes in the Divorce Act. Contact us for more information.
