Divorce and Annulment
Core concepts
Understand the difference between divorce (dissolving a valid marriage) and annulment (declaring a marriage void or voidable). In Canada, the federal Divorce Act governs divorce; the ground is breakdown of marriage, established by living separate and apart for at least one year, adultery, or cruelty. Separation may be continuous despite brief reconciliations (generally up to 90 days) and spouses may live under the same roof while separated if genuinely apart. Corollary relief includes parenting orders, support, and property claims under provincial law.
Traps in questions
- Treating adultery or cruelty as requiring proof beyond a reasonable doubt; the civil standard applies.
- Assuming a one-year separation requires living at different addresses.
- Forgetting that a divorce does not automatically resolve property or support; those are separate claims.
- Confusing annulment (defect at formation) with divorce (breakdown after formation).
- Overlooking bars and defences such as connivance, condonation, and collusion (where applicable) and jurisdictional requirements.
Rule of thumb
For breakdown, default to one year separation unless facts clearly show adultery or cruelty; then check reconciliation rules and whether corollary claims are preserved.
Worked example
Spouses separate in March, reconcile for six weeks in July, and separate again in August. The separation clock generally continues because the reconciliation was brief (under 90 days). If they instead reconciled for five months, the clock restarts. Either way, property and support claims must be pleaded separately.