Divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage. Only legally married couples – that is, those who went through an official wedding ceremony – need to obtain a divorce from the court to end their relationship. Couples who are living together but who are not married do not need to go to court in order to end their relationship.
Getting a divorce in the Province of Alberta involves obtaining a final judgment from the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench. This court will also deal with any division of property, custody, access (parenting) or support issues arising out of a divorce.
A divorce can be “contested” or “uncontested”. An uncontested divorce is one where the parties are in agreement on all aspects of the divorce, including any division of property, custody, access (parenting) or support issues. The court is still involved in an uncontested divorce but in a very limited way. A contested divorce is one in which the parties (or one of them) dispute some aspect of the divorce and are therefore unable to resolve their issues without the assistance of the court.
Max Blitt has over 40 years of specialist family law experience and can help you with any aspect of your divorce and answer any questions you may have.