At your first appointment, the lawyer will need to see any previous domestic contract you have signed (separation agreement, cohabitation agreement, marriage contract) and/or any court Order currently in force.

If you have a draft agreement or other document that you want the lawyer to review, please provide it by email a few days prior to your meeting.

If you have property issues, bring as many statements from your accounts as you can for the date of separation.

You may bring a person who already knows all the details of your issue, or someone you trust hearing all the details. There is always a risk when bringing a third party that if your matter proceeds to trial, that person could be called as a witness and the solicitor-client privilege you have with your lawyer does not extend to the third party.

If you choose to use AI to research your legal issues, be aware that AI sometimes creates fake cases and summaries to support the position you have taken. These look very real and even have citations. If AI gives you case law, check it on CanLII at https://www.canlii.org/.

Yes. This information could be relevant to your case depending on your legal issues.

One of the most important considerations in any separation is financial disclosure. Lack or disclosure can delay settlement, and can also result in a party having to start a court Application just to obtain the relevant financial disclosure from the other party.

Financial Disclosure is mandatory if you have property or children, and/or if there is, or could be, a claim for spousal support. The sooner both parties provide their financial disclosure, the sooner the issues can be resolved.

Always tell your lawyer right away about any Court documents, Court Orders or Separation Agreements relating to any earlier marriage/relationship and any Cohabitation Agreement, Marriage Contract or other agreements relating to this relationship. Clients will be required to provide the following documents;

Three (3) years of Tax Returns and Notices of Assessment as well as three (3) consecutive pay stubs

• Bank Statements (chequing and savings account) as at the date of separation
• RRSP, GIC, T-Bill, Term Deposit, Canada Savings Bonds, brokerage statement, stock option agreement and any other investment statements as at the date of separation
• Copy of appraisal for house, if you have one
• List of vehicles
• Current employment pension plan statement
• 3 years corporate financial statement, corporate tax returns and assessment notices and 6 months of corporate bank statements
• Cash surrender value statements for whole life insurance
• List of safety deposit contents
• Current loan and mortgage statements
• Credit card statement for all credit cards, as at the date of separation
• Any court papers relating to your marriage or your family
• Any information you may have about assets, debts or property you owned before you got married

Original Governmental Marriage Certificate from Vital Statistics. Only 1 person needs to do this.