Divorce After a Long Marriage in Ontario: What to Expect

After many years together, finances are often tangled: a home, pensions, savings, maybe a business or a cottage. You may also have spent years with one spouse earning more while the other managed the household or supported a career. Divorce law in Ontario has specific rules for each of these.

This article walks through how equalization, the family home and spousal support are generally approached, and what the process looks like. It is general information; the outcome in any case depends on its facts.

The legal basics of divorce

To start a divorce in Ontario, at least one spouse must have been habitually resident in the province for at least one year immediately before the proceeding begins. The only ground is marriage breakdown, shown by living separate and apart for at least one year.

The court also has a duty to satisfy itself that there is no possibility of reconciliation, unless the circumstances make that inappropriate. If you tried to get back together, the one-year period is not broken if you lived together for no more than 90 days in total and reconciliation was the main purpose.

How equalization works after many years

Net family property is the value of what you own on the separation date, minus debts and excluded property, less the same net value at the date of marriage. A negative result counts as zero. The spouse with the larger amount pays half the difference as an equalization payment.

In a long marriage, the starting value at marriage is often small compared with what you own at separation, so most growth is shared. Excluded property includes gifts and inheritances from someone other than your spouse received during the marriage (other than the family home), insurance money from a death, personal injury money and anything you both agree to exclude. An Ontario pension also counts as property, and you ask the pension administrator for its value.

Unequal division is allowed only in very special situations where equal division would be extremely unfair.

The family home

Only the house and a small surrounding area count in the family home rule, and its full value is shared even if one spouse owned it before the marriage. Whether a cottage or other property qualifies depends on how it was used, so ask a lawyer about it.

A married person can ask the court to let them stay in the home and require the other spouse to leave, even if the spouse owns it. The judge looks at past violence, whether there is another suitable place to live, the children's interests and both parties' finances. Whether there are other steps to protect your position on the home depends on your situation, so it is worth confirming with a lawyer.

Spousal support after a long relationship

The court may consider spousal support by looking at each spouse's condition, means, needs and other circumstances, including the length of cohabitation, the functions each performed during cohabitation, and any order, agreement or arrangement about support. A long marriage and years spent on household or family work are therefore directly relevant.

How long support lasts and how much is paid depend on the particular facts, including incomes, health and retirement plans. A lawyer can estimate a realistic range once they see your financial information.

Steps, paperwork and timing

• Choose the application: Form 8A for divorce only, a joint application if you agree, or Form 8 if you also claim support, parenting or property.
• The respondent has 30 days to serve and file an Answer on Form 10 if served in Canada or the United States, or 60 days if served elsewhere.
• Financial statements: Form 13 for support only, Form 13.1 if property or debt is claimed. They must be sworn or affirmed.
• A case conference is generally needed before a motion for a temporary order, unless there is urgency or hardship.
• Most family cases require the Mandatory Information Program and a settlement conference before trial.

Agreements reached at a conference are written as Minutes of Settlement. A temporary order, for example on support or who lives in the home, can stay in place while the case continues. Equalization claims must be brought within six years of separation or two years after the divorce is final, whichever comes first. The divorce itself takes effect 31 days after the order.

What to do next

• Record your marriage and separation dates.
• Find the original marriage certificate.
• Collect statements for every account, pension and debt as of the separation date, and as best you can at marriage.
• Request pension values from administrators.
• List any gifts, inheritances and what became of them.
• Book a meeting with a family lawyer before making major financial moves.

Frequently asked questions