Preface

• Jurisdiction: Canada
• Author: Julien D. Payne,Marilyn A. Payne
• Date: 25 July 2022

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Preface

Family law is a changing and dynamic f‌ield. In the twenty-f‌irst century, Can-

adian families will encounter new challenges. Marriage and the family are

no longer synonymous. e traditional nuclear family of the 1950s, with its

breadwinning husband, homemaking wife, and their two or more children,

is a minority group. Two-income families, with or without children, high

divorce and remarriage rates, and the increasing incidence of unmarried

cohabitation, whether involving opposite- or same-sex couples, have fos-

tered new family structures and radical legal reforms. At the same time, there

has been increased recognition of the inherent limitations of the law in regu-

lating marriage and the family.

e public and the legal profession are aware of the devastating impact

that family breakdown can have on women and children. e feminization of

poverty that results from single parenthood, family breakdown, and divorce

continues to be of pressing concern to provincial and federal governments as

they seek to enforce spousal and child support payments that have fallen into

default and endeavour to provide a socioeconomic safety net for sole parents

and children.

Canadian family law is continually in transition as it responds to evolving

family structures. Chapter 1 of Canadian Family Law identif‌ies the changing

character of Canadian families and poses fundamental questions concern-

ing possible future directions of law and social policy in Canada. In addition,

it provides a review of the legal consequences of marriage breakdown and

divorce since the enactment of the f‌irst Dominion-wide Divorce Act in 1968.

e fragmentation of legislative powers between the Parliament of Canada

and the provincial and territorial legislatures is also addressed, together with

the inef‌f‌icient fragmentation of jurisdiction between diverse courts that has

led to the emergence of specialized Family Courts.