EXPERTISE

FAMILY LAW, PERSONAL LAW AND ESTATE LAW

Overview

Over the last 20 years, substantial legislative reform of the laws of persons, family and estate have contributed to their complexity.

At Lavery, we have a team of lawyers specializing in the complex areas of family, personal and estate law. With their in depth understanding of all that is involved, legally, practically and emotionally, you can be assured that they will be responsive to your needs and committed to finding the best solution, while fully respecting your rights. Where necessary, we will combine the expertise of our lawyers in these areas of the law with that of specialists in other disciplines such as tax law, corporate law, commercial litigation and real estate, in order to answer your specific legal needs.

Our multi-dimensional firm ensures that you will also be provided with a full spectrum of legal expertise, including tax law, corporate law, commercial litigation and real estate law; whatever is required to offer a complete solution to your situation.

Our experts have published the authoritative work on family patrimony, Législation sur le patrimoine familial annotée (Carswell, 3d edition 2000). They have also updated the property law section in Droit de la famille québécois (Éditions CCH/FM Ltée).

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Services

  • Divorce, separation and marriage annulment proceedings (evaluation and division of family patrimony, matrimonial regimes and pension plans)
  • Drafting of agreements on corollary relief to divorce and legal separation
  • Child custody and support
  • Adoption of minor or major persons
  • Spousal support
  • Modification of accessory measures (alimony, custody, child support)
  • Representation of children before the courts
  • Applications to confirm parental authority
  • Actions for recognition of paternity
  • Representation of common law spouses
  • Drafting of contracts of domestic partnership/cohabitation agreements
  • Drafting of marriage contracts and prenuptial and post nuptial agreements
  • Mediation
  • Applications for the division of property
  • Drafting of wills and estate settlements
  • Preparation of living wills, powers of attorney and mandates in anticipation of incapacity
  • Estate litigation; proceedings to set aside wills; replace liquidators or trustees; amend trust deeds; terminate trusts; for the passing of accounts; and declaratory judgments
  • Institution of regime of protective supervision for persons of minor or full age (tutorship, curatorship, adviser)
  • Private international law (relocation of children, foreign matrimonial regimes, settlement of foreign estates)
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Professionals

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An independent law firm, offering the full range of legal services to business. 175 lawyers in Montreal, Quebec City and Ottawa. Member of the World Services Group, an international network of service firms with offices in 120 countries.

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