Financial Disclosure in Ontario Property Division Claims

When a marriage ends, dividing property fairly depends on both people being open about what they own and owe. In Ontario, that openness is not just good practice. It is a requirement once a property claim is in court.

This article explains the main disclosure steps, the documents that usually go with them, and what can happen if disclosure is missing or wrong. It is general information only, and a lawyer can confirm how it applies to your situation.

Why disclosure matters in property division

Equalization depends on the value of each spouse's property on the valuation date, less debts and certain deductions. Property is defined broadly and includes shares in a business or company. You cannot work out the numbers fairly unless both sides put their full picture on the table.

The spouse claiming a deduction or exclusion, such as a gift, an inheritance or a date-of-marriage deduction, has the onus of proving it. That makes records important for you as well as for the other side.

The financial statement

In an equalization application, each party must serve on the other and file with the court a sworn statement of their property, debts and other liabilities. It must cover the date of marriage, the valuation date and the date of the statement, plus claimed deductions and exclusions and certain disposals of property.

Under the Family Law Rules, a party making a property claim must serve and file a financial statement with the claim, and for property claims the form is Form 13.1. The responding party must serve and file one too, within the time for its answer or response.

Supporting documents and later statements

Within 30 days after the financial statement is due, a party to a Family Law Act Part I property claim must serve supporting documents, including statements for accounts and investments issued closest to the valuation date.

Before a settlement conference or trial, each party to a Part I property claim must serve and file a net family property statement, Form 13B. The timing differs by event:

If you discover that a document you served under Rule 13 is incorrect, you must promptly serve the corrected information.

What happens if disclosure is missing or incomplete

• If a required disclosure document has not been served or filed, the court may on motion order the party to do so, and must then also order that party to pay costs.
• If a party does not obey an order, the court may make any order it considers necessary, including costs, a fine or penalty, dismissing a claim, striking out documents, barring use of undisclosed documents, postponing the trial, or a contempt order.
• The court may order a non-party to produce a document, and may order a party or non-party to be questioned under oath. For documents, the test is whether it would be unfair to go on with the case without it.
• A court may set aside a domestic contract, such as a separation agreement, if a party failed to disclose significant assets, debts or other liabilities that existed when it was made.

A court can also make interim or final orders restraining the depletion of a spouse's property in an equalization or title application.

What to do next

• Gather statements for bank accounts, investments, pensions and debts, especially those closest to the valuation date.
• Collect records that show what you owned on the date of marriage and any gifts or inheritances you plan to claim as excluded.
• Note the dates that matter: marriage, separation and the date of your statement.
• Check any draft separation agreement to see whether it reflects full disclosure from both sides.
• Correct any error in a served document as soon as you find it.
• Speak with a family lawyer about deadlines and about valuing business interests or pensions.

Frequently asked questions