Families and the Law: Cases and Commentary, First Captus Edition

Families and the Law is significantly revised and completely updated to March 31, 2012. Like its earlier edition, the casebook examines topics in family law in context, using a variety of interdisciplinary and comparative materials to explore and critique developments in family law. A short introduction explains the organization and scope, the first chapter introduces some major themes about families and the law, the context of family life in Canada, the challenges of defining family relationships in law and in life. There are three Parts in the book: Family Formation (including marriage and cohabitation, as well as parent-child relationships including issues about biological relationships, adoption, and assisted reproduction); Law in relation to Intact Families (including issues about child care, child protection, domestic violence and elder abuse); and Family Dissolution (including divorce in the context of family bargaining and dispute resolution processes, property sharing for married and cohabiting couples, spousal support, issues regarding children such as custody and access, the role of professionals and new developments in decision making, and child support). As the Epilogue emphasizes, family law reveals how law plays a significant role in the creation, ongoing monitoring and dissolution of social relations for families and family members. The primary focus is family law in Ontario, but the book also examines interesting and new developments in other Canadian jurisdictions, and beyond. It also provides helpful notes and problem questions about the materials and cases, as well as additional resources in all of the chapters. A class-tested, carefully-considered collection of cases and commentary, Families and the Law is a stimulating learning resource, perfect as a primary or secondary text for courses on family law, legal studies, and law and society programs, and an invaluable resource for all who study family law in Canada.https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/faculty_books/1109/thumbnail.jp