Legal Briefs

Until 2010, these legal briefs provide examples of judgments pertaining to everyday situations. Beginning in 2012, they deal with various topics of general interest, such as rental issues, family law, human rights, civil liability, insurance, dealings between spouses and social aid. They are intended to inform and to prevent undesirable situations.

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Legal Briefs 2021

  Month

Number

Legal brief

December

 10

The age of consent for sexual activities

In Canada, the age of consent for sexual activities is 16. This means that, subject to certain exceptions, a person under the age of 16 cannot consent to sexual activities. It is important to know that the term “sexual activities” includes all activities of a sexual nature (kissing, touching a part more

Novembre

 9

Participating in an Offence: Encouraging and Aiding

John, Felix and Annabelle are talking to each other as they leave school. Felix is thinking about stealing a bag of chips from the local convenience store.

John encourages him to do it and then leaves to go home.

Felix and Annabelle enter the convenience store. They agreed that Annabel more

Octobre

 8

The Youth Protection Act and Its Placement Periods

One of the objectives of the Youth Protection Act is that a child be able to remain with his family or be able to return to his family as soon as possible, if it is in the child’s best interests. At what point does one determine that the objective of returning a child to his family is no long more

August - September

 7

HAS or SARPA, which applies to me?

Homologation assistance service (HAS)

The Homologation Assistance Service is intented for parties residing in Quebec who wish, for whatever reason, to modify arrangements pertaining to child custody or access rights or support involving a child or spouse (or more

June - July

 6

Nicole and Raymond own a family home and have money in their bank account. Are they financially eligible for legal aid?

Nicole and Raymond have been living together for over a year. Raymond works at the village hotel as a waiter. Nicole occasionally babysits. They have a combined annual gross income of $40,100. They have no children. They own a family home worth $110,000, which is fully paid off. They have $6,000 in more

May

 5

Moving and the New Divorce Act

The new Divorce Act (hereinafter the “Act”), which came into force on March 1, 2021, governs moves by separated persons with parenting time or decision-making responsibilities in respect of a child of the marriage. There are two regimes that distinguish between a change in the place of residenc more

April

 4

Buying a Vehicle and Third Chance Credit

You’ve been unlucky and you have bad credit. You’ve just declared bankruptcy and are unable to find financing. In these situations, it can be tempting to go to a car dealership offering a second or even third chance at credit, especially since their advertising indicates that no one is refused!
< more

March

 3

How Can I Intervene in the Case of a Child Who is Dear to Me When a Hearing in the Youth Division is Scheduled?

First of all, you should know that a child’s file in the Court of Québec – Youth Division is highly confidential. You cannot consult it or obtain information unless you are a party to the case.

Only the child, the child’s father (legally recognized), the child’s mother and the repre more

February

 2

The Right to Remain Silent

The presumption of innocence: It’s a fundamental principle of the Canadian justice system pursuant to which an accused is presumed innocent until proven otherwise, that is, until the person themselves admits their guilt or, at trial, the prosecution shows their guilt beyond a reasonab more

January

 1

How is Child or Spousal Support Paid?

Henriette and Léopaul have three children. After living together for 12 years, they split up. Following a few mediation sessions, both parents agree that Léopaul will have sole custody of the three children since Henriette has a job that requires her to travel out of town for varying periods of time. Consequently, she will have access to the children when she is in town.


As provided for in their judgment, Henriette must pay child support to Léopaul for their three children. But how will this support be payable?


The Act to facilitate the payment of support provides that the debtor of support (the payer) must make the support payments, including arrears, if any, to the Minister of Revenue for the benefit of the creditor of support (the recipient).


Practically speaking, as soon as the judgment is received, the clerk of the court sends the Minister the relevant information so that a Revenu Québec agent can contact the creditor and the debtor to set up the collection procedure. Support payments are collected by means of a deduction at source (e.g., salary) or by means of a payment order (e.g., bank transfer or direct debit) or both.


As a general rule, support payments will be deducted directly from the debtor's salary and paid directly into the creditor's bank account on the 1st and 16th of each month.


The Act to facilitate the payment of support provides for the possibility of being exempted from the automatic collection of support payments, where both parties consent and a judgment is rendered to that effect. In such a case, the debtor of support will have to provide Revenu Québec with sufficient security to guarantee support payments for one month. Subsequently, if the debtor of support fails to make a support payment on the due date, the creditor may contact the Revenu Québec agent to advise the agent of this default and request that automatic collection be implemented.


Please note that a person who wishes to change support payments established in a judgment will have no choice but to obtain a new judgment by instituting proceedings in the Superior Court to change the support payments. It is also possible, under certain conditions, to obtain a change in support payments through the Homologation Assistance Service (HAS) or through the Service administratif de rajustement des pensions alimentaires pour enfants (SARPA), a child support recalculation service. 


If you have any questions regarding support payments, do not hesitate to consult one of our lawyers or the Revenu Québec website at the following link:

https://www.revenuquebec.ca/en/support-payments/.
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To find the contact information for your legal aid office, please visit our website at www.csj.qc.ca.

Legal brief *
January  2021
Number  1
Text prepared by   Me Jessica Boucher-Tremblay
Update by   CSJ
* The information set out in this document is not a legal interpretation.
The masculine is used to designate persons solely in order to simplify the text.