Husband’s Behavior Toward His Wife and the Divorce Court Leads to Steep Financial Penalties

Many couples who go through divorce resolve to have the least messy divorce possible. They compromise on things that are important to them, even if it means debts that will take them years to pay off after the divorce is final, just so their children will not have to witness a protracted conflict. Therefore, they file uncontested divorce petitions that may help to finalize the divorce quickly, but their provisions satisfy no one. The best solution, if you and your spouse want an amicable divorce, but you fundamentally disagree on matters of property division, is to attend family court mediation. Otherwise, the obvious course of action is to file a petition for contested divorce and to let a judge decide the matters on which you and your spouse disagree. The possibility that the court will decide some issues in a manner unfavorable to you is better than the court simply signing off on all of your spouse’s requests and none of yours, which is what happened in a recent case in Ontario. To avoid situations where the court disregards your requests as a punishment for your actions during your marriage and divorce, contact a Mississauga family lawyer.

Court Treats Divorce Case as Uncontested Because of Husband’s Lack of Financial Transparency

A couple married in Egypt in 2008 and settled in Canada. The wife had worked in a bank in Egypt, but she only worked sporadically in Canada, largely because an injury limited her ability to work. Domestic violence was a factor that led to the couple’s separation. When the parties filed for divorce in 2019, their three children were minors.

They filed a contested divorce application, but eventually the court converted the case to uncontested and treated the wife’s divorce application as if it were an application for uncontested divorce, refusing to consider the husband’s requests. This was because the husband had repeatedly ignored requests to submit financial disclosures, and because he had been uncooperative during court hearings. It ordered the husband to pay child support and spousal support based on an imputed income amount of just over $200,000 per year.

Court Awards Wife Compensatory Damages for Domestic Violence

Compensatory damages are common in civil cases; they are the main thing at stake in many civil lawsuits, including but not limited to personal injury lawsuits and business disputes. The family courts of Ontario can award compensatory damages to one spouse in divorce cases because of financial or physical harm that the other spouse has caused. In this case, the court awarded the wife $100,000 in compensatory damages for the physical abuse by the husband that she had endured during the marriage.

Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP About Divorce Cases That Are Messier Than They Look

A family lawyer can help you resolve complex financial issues in your divorce, whether through mediation or through contested divorce proceedings.  Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP in Mississauga, Ontario to discuss your case.

Source:

lawtimesnews.com/practice-areas/family/ontario-superior-court-grants-substantial-financial-support-to-mother-in-high-conflict-divorce/388122