Statistics Canada Article on Processing of Divorce Cases Through Civil Courts

Statistics Canada has published The processing of divorce cases through civil court in seven provinces and territories in the most recent issue of its Juristat publication:

"All divorces in Canada must go through a civil court in order to be legally recognized. In Canada, the civil court system is divided between the federal and provincial and territorial governments. Divorce cases are governed by the legislation contained in the federal Divorce Act and can be handled by two types of civil courts: superior courts and unified family courts. Superior courts hear cases related to federal statutes, including divorce cases. Unified family courts are specialist courts that only deal with issues involving family law and may hear matters under both federal and provincial-territorial legislation."

"In divorce proceedings, the federal Divorce Act applies to custody, access and support issues. Provincial and territorial legislation determines these issues for married and unmarried parents seeking separation, and divorcing parents who choose to have these issues determined under provincial legislation during their divorce proceedings (...)"

"Using data from the Civil Court Survey, this article examines divorce cases as they proceed through the civil court system in seven provinces and territories (Nova Scotia, Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, which represent 66% of Canada’s population). Some of the key aspects associated with these cases are examined, including the volume of cases, the number and type of case events and the length of time taken to process cases. Where relevant, the analysis in this article compares divorce cases to all other family court cases including property division, custody, access and support under provincial law, adoption, child protection, civil protection, enforcement, family estate matters and guardianship."