Alberta Law Reform Institute Paper on Property Division for Common-law Couples

The Alberta Law Reform Institute (ALRI) published a discussion paper in September 2017 on Property Division: Common Law Couples and Adult Interdependent Partners.

The ALRI is now seeking feedback on its preliminary recommendations, before it makes final recommendations to the government of Alberta:

"In recent decades, the number of common-law relationships has been growing faster than the number of marriages. In Alberta, however, there are no legislated rules for property division upon the breakdown of a common-law relationship. The Matrimonial Property Act applies only to married spouses. Property division for common-law partners is based on legal ownership and the law of unjust enrichment, which is judge-made law. When common-law partners separate, there are no presumptions or formulas about how they should divide property. If they cannot agree, they face litigation which can be time-consuming, expensive, and risky."