Divorce Act Changes Implementation Pushed to 2021
The Federal Government of Canada has recently announced that the implementation of changes to the Divorce Act that were set to come into effect on July 1, have now been postponed to March 1, 2021.
This decision was announced by Minister of Attorney General, David Lametti, and was made in light of the recent unforeseen and unusual circumstances surrounding the pandemic. During the COVID-19 period, family courts have only been addressing urgent matters, thus making the required steps for implementation impossible to fulfill.
The changes to the Divorce Act were set to address some much needed reform in family law, namely promoting the best interests of the children, addressing family violence, reducing conflict, and making access to justice more efficient. For more information on what these changes entail, check out an article we wrote awhile back entitled “Long-Overdue Divorce Act Amendments Are Likely On the Horizon“.
The shift to prospective justice that these changes represented were much needed and the delay is unfortunate, however at Russell Alexander Collaborative Family Lawyers we continue to be committed to achieving these goals for our clients and their families.
