As you can probably guess, there is no one definitive answer for much a family lawyer costs in Canada. Great lawyers charge more, big city lawyers charge more, new lawyers charge less, but we can look at some national averages to give you a good idea if you’re getting a steal or a deal.
What is the hourly rate for a family lawyer in Canada?
The hourly rate of family lawyers for legal advice in Canada, specifically for cases regarding family law, generally depends on the province or territory where the lawyer is located at. Notably, it would then vary since lawyers in the urban areas tend to charge higher than in the rural areas. For example, in Ontario, the general hourly rate for a family lawyer’s consultation or legal advice is at C$300 to C$600.
How much is a family lawyer’s fee in Canada?
A family lawyer’s fee in Canada normally depends on the kind of recourse or action that the spouses or parents are availing of. In general, out-of-court transactions (e.g., uncontested divorce, family dispute resolutions) are less costly than court-related activities which includes trials. Although, in both cases, these charges would already include the payment for the preparation of legal documents and legal advice, except if these are just the specific transactions that the spouses or parents are enlisting the lawyer for, which is then paid a separate fee.
National average costs of family lawyers in Canada
To really get down to answering the question on how much does a family lawyer cost, currently, the national average for costs of family lawyers in Canada are:
- Uncontested divorce: C$1,900
- Contested divorce: C$22,000
- Trial:
- Up to 2 days: C$20,000
- Up to 5 days: C$45,000
- Marriage or co-habitation agreement: C$3,000
- Separation agreement:
- With children: C$7,000
- Without children: C$6,000
- Child custody (parenting arrangement) and child support agreement: C$2,500
- Spousal support agreement: C$6,500
- Division of property or assets agreement: C$3,500
- Variation applications: C$7,000
- Mobility cases of children: C$16,000
- Child protection hearings: C$7,500
However, these rates may increase or decrease depending on the case of each family, the specific province the family is located, the length or duration of each case until its resolution, and the court intervention needed (e.g., the more the reliefs sought for, lawyer fees or costs may add up to each of these transactions).
How much does a family lawyer cost in Ontario?
Costs of Ontario’s family lawyers, generally, are higher compared to the national average (where it may even reach up to twice the national average); except for some judicial transactions such as uncontested divorces (which is at C$1,500), where it is generally the same with the rest of the other eastern provinces.
How much does a family lawyer cost in Eastern Canada?
Family lawyers in the rest of Canada’s eastern provinces, namely, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec, charge lower costs specifically for assistance in child custody (parenting arrangements) and support agreements (C$1,750), and variation applications (C$3,500).
Read and find out how can you get a sole custody over a child here.
For trials, family lawyers in these eastern provinces (C$11,750 for trials up to 2 days; C$30,000 for trials up to 5 days) charge the same costs with their counterparts in the western provinces (C$12,000 for trials up to 2 days; C$28,000 for trials up to 5 days) with a difference only by a small margin.
How much does a family lawyer cost in Western Canada?
In Canada’s western provinces, costs of family lawyers in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, is much lower compared to the national average, to the eastern provinces, and to Ontario.
Although, there are some differences in some processes, such as for uncontested divorce (C$2,000) generally charged higher in these provinces in contrast to Ontario. Particularly, family lawyer costs are cheapest in these western provinces, specifically for assistance in contested divorce (C$14,000), spousal support agreements (C$1,700), mobility cases of children (C$8,000), and child protection hearings (C$5,500).
What does a family lawyer do in Canada?
Family lawyers in Canada assist clients, particularly parents and family members, in various judicial proceedings and out-of-court processes relating to divorce or legal separation and other reliefs that generally comes with it.
Family law in Canada
Family law in Canada is both under the jurisdiction of federal and provincial or territorial laws – with the federal family law prescribing the national law, and the provincial or territorial laws providing for its specific application or to support its implementation.
The Divorce Act
The Divorce Act provides for the ground of divorce and governs its legal process and its corollary reliefs, such as child or spousal support orders; parenting orders; contact orders; and parenting plans. It also includes other reliefs provided for the child or children of the separating parents, such as their relocation; and change in place of residence.
The Act also provides for the process of variation, rescission, or suspension of the orders that may be availed from the same Act. Judgment granting or denying the divorce may also be appealed, according to the procedures set by the Act. In all these legal proceedings, it is the child’s best interests that are the very consideration of the court or the judge in making its final determination of every relief prayed by the spouses or the parents.
Discover and learn the laws of child custody in Canada with this article.
Family lawyers in Canada
The work of family lawyers in Canada mainly revolves around the provisions of the Divorce Act, in addition to the provincial and territorial processes on family dispute resolutions, which includes family negotiation, mediation or conciliation, collaborative law, and arbitration. The costs of family lawyers in Canada may be generally divided into these judicial and out-of-court proceedings that they may help the spouses with, depending on the specific circumstances of the family and the reliefs sought for:
- Uncontested divorce
- Contested divorce
- Trial
- Marriage or co-habitation agreement
- Separation agreement with or without children
- Child custody (parenting arrangement) and child support agreement
- Spousal support agreement
- Division of property or assets agreement
- Variation applications
- Mobility cases of children
- Child protection hearings
Uncontested divorce refers to both judicial and out-of-court divorce proceeding, such as agreements made after family dispute resolution, where both spouses or parents mutually agree to the divorce and amicably settle all other post-divorce family matters (e.g., spousal support, child support, parenting arrangements or parenting time).
Find out how to get a favourable parenting arrangement from the court in Canada.
However, where both spouses or parents cannot agree on the divorce and other related matters, and where their dispute is submitted to the jurisdiction of the court, it is called contested divorce. Certainly, uncontested divorce is cheaper compared to contested divorce since there is less need for lawyers and less time consumed in the case of the former.
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