As the saying goes, "Divorce and the division of family assets is a double-edged sword, you must hurt yourself on one side to drive it in on the other."
Aside from child custody, the division of the family property (which includes, among other things, RRSPs and family residences) remains the preferred topic to cause discord during the settlement of a divorce.
The Civil Code of Quebec stipulates that the net value of the family property is normally established on the date of filing the application for separation or divorce. In a case where there is a difference of more than five years on the date to be used for division, the judge of the Superior Court concludes that there can be no reason to deviate from equal division or to use a different date than the start of the proceedings, which was in March 2006.
Unsatisfied with the judgement, the husband appeals to the Court of Appeal* and requests, as permitted by the Civil Code of Quebec, that the net value of the property be established "on the date of the end of the parties' cohabitation, which is December 31, 1999".
Relying on a statement made by the wife in her divorce application, indicating that the marriage had failed and they had been living separately since December 31, 1999, the Court of Appeal declares that "considering the end of the parties' cohabitation on December 31, 1999, it is appropriate to retroactively apply this date for the division of the family property".
As a Chinese proverb says: "Divorce [and division of the family property] is a double-edged sword, you have to hurt yourself on one side to drive it in on the other".
*C.A. Montreal 500-09-017190-067
