CLE Online

Thursday, July 8

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:10)

James A.W. Schuman, QC — Schuman Basran Robin & Bell, Vancouver
Jeffrey A. Rose, QC — Jeffrey A. Rose, QC, Vancouver
Nikki L. Charlton — Farris LLP, Vancouver

Nagging Spousal Support Issues (9:10 – 10:00)

• SSAG mid-point is NOT the default
• shared custody: there is a default
• material change: ups and downs
• BCCA appeals update

Professor Rollie Thompson, QC — Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, Halifax

BREAK (10:00 – 10:15)

Post-pandemic Evidence Law (10:15 – 11:05)

• are there now, or will there ever be, any "rules of evidence" in family law?
• relevance, hearsay, opinion, judicial notice, privilege?
• testing credibility on Zoom, Teams, and the telephone
• surreptitious recording will never stop

Professor Rollie Thompson, QC — Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, Halifax

BREAK (11:05 – 11:20)

Cases You May have Missed While Focussing on Other Things (11:20 – 12:15)

• reported decisions from the SCC, BCCA, and BCSC in 2020 and early 2021 including topics on:
  • retroactive child support
  • parenting coordination
  • medical decisions for children
  • related issues in the areas of trusts and estates 

Jesse L. Desilets — Schuman Basran Robin & Bell, Vancouver
Shashika R. Stanislaus — Schuman Basran Robin & Bell, Vancouver

LUNCH BREAK (12:15 – 12:55)

Discretionary Family Trusts: The Collision of Family Law and Estate Planning (12:55 – 1:45)

• how to advance a claim for an interest in a discretionary family trust, as against the beneficiary-spouse and the trustee
  • framing your client's claim
  • pleadings
  • to add or not to add the trustee as a respondent
  • evidence to gather
• how to defend such a claim if you are acting for the beneficiary
  
  • identification of exclusions and defences
  • pleadings
  • evidence to gather
• tactical and settlement considerations

Paul M. Daykin, QC — Aaron Gordon Daykin Nordlinger LLP, Vancouver
Eli C. Walker — Aaron Gordon Daykin Nordlinger LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (1:45 – 2:00)

Retaining Your Sanity: How & Why to Write a Good Retainer/Engagement Agreement (2:00 – 2:55)

• why you should have a good engagement document
  • your terms
  • your money
  • your reputation
• technical requirements
  
  • LSBC rules
  • Part 8 of the Legal Profession Act, SBC 1998, Ch. 9
  • LIF recommendations
  • s. 4 of the Interest Act, RSC 1985 Ch. I-15
• limited retainer agreements
• non-engagement letters
• useful case law
• appendix—examples of engagement agreements
  
  • litigation
  • limited retainers
  • collaborative
  • mediation
  • mediation/arbitration
  • arbitration
  • parenting coordination

Ian B. Hayward — Hayward Sheppard, Vancouver
Morag M.J. MacLeod, QC — Barrister & Solicitor, Vancouver

BREAK (2:55 – 3:10)

View from the Bench: Teaching Your Client to Swear (3:10 – 4:00)

• sworn financial statements
• difficult client conversations
• post-pandemic family litigation

The Honourable Mr. Justice Jasvinder S. Basran — Supreme Court of BC, Vancouver

Friday, July 9

Welcome Back and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:10)

James A.W. Schuman, QC — Schuman Basran Robin & Bell, Vancouver
Jeffrey A. Rose, QC — Jeffrey A. Rose, QC, Vancouver
Nikki L. Charlton — Farris LLP, Vancouver

Arbitration and Mediation/Arbitration: Think Outside the Box (9:10 – 10:05)

• review the new Family Law Arbitration provisions in the FLA
• consider the various creative options available to you
• review the different process choices and rules

Eugene Raponi, QC — Waddell Raponi LLP, Victoria

BREAK (10:05 – 10:20)

Relocation on the Move in the Age of an Amended Divorce Act (10:20 – 11:10)

• changes arising from the amendments to the Divorce Act
• selecting between the Family Law Act and the Divorce Act
• the double-bind question

Taryn M. Moore — Pushor Mitchell LLP, Kelowna
Michael M. Sinclair — Pihl Law Corporation, Kelowna

BREAK (11:10 – 11:25)

From Kids' Mouths to Lawyers' Ears: What Every Lawyer Needs to Tell a Divorcing Parent (11:25 – 12:15)

• use your role (as lawyer) to help parents you work with to achieve a kid-centric divorce by learning effective:
  • kid anxiety-reducers during divorce
  • kid happiness-boosters during divorce
  • parent-child relationship-maximizer during divorce

Dr. Lisa Ferrari, RPsych — Director, Vancouver Psychology Centre, Vancouver

LUNCH BREAK (12:15 – 12:55)

Practice in Provincial Court—The New Family Law Rules Are Here! (12:55 – 1:50)

• objectives of the rules
• review and findings of Early Resolution Process in Surrey & Victoria
• new types of court appearances and forms (where did all the motions go?) 

The Honourable Associate Chief Judge Sue Wishart — Provincial Court of BC, Victoria
The Honourable Judge Kathryn J. Ferriss — Provincial Court of BC, Surrey

BREAK (1:50 – 2:05)

Property Issues Round Up and New Developments (2:05 – 2:55)

• authority to order divisive corporate reorganizations
• interplay between excluded property and s. 95 unequal division
• unequal division and tax considerations

Scott L. Booth — Jenkins Marzban Logan LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (2:55 – 3:10)

Ethics in Daily Practice (3:10 – 4:00)

• accessing, receiving, or collecting documents or data
  • what is the digital equivalent of unopened envelopes? 
  • how to assess reasonable expectation of privacy 
  • what to do if you stumble into privileged communications
• accepting fee payments from a payor in arrears or where a financial restraining order is either contemplated or in force
• the best interests tightrope: when do the means not justify the ends? 

Todd R. Bell — Schuman Basran Robin & Bell, Vancouver
Claire L. Marchant — Manager, Practice Support and Equity Ombudsperson, Law Society of BC, Vancouver
Dinyar Marzban, QC — Jenkins Marzban Logan LLP, Vancouver