Tuesday, January 26. 2021

Today's schedule is:

9:15 - 11:50 C Block Social and Environmental Sciences

12:30 - 3:05 B Block Legal Studies

C Block Social and Environmental Sciences - We'll head to the library for you to continue working on your interview / local environmental issue assignment. While this is happening Benton and I will continue conducting our interviews with you. We will ask for volunteers (rather than voluntolds), we have three people ready to go right away this morning. Remember Benton and I asked you to find out as much as you can about a local environmental issue or group. The goal of this assignment is for you to find solutions to the local environmental issue you have defined by either discovering what a local group is doing to address the issue or through researching about community action regarding your issue. Benton and I will conduct an interview with you structured around a W5H approach (who, what, when, where, why, how). Remember you're looking at groups who are trying to solve an environmental issue. Consider the following questions:

1. Which do you think is the best way to address this issue in your community, community action or public policy

2. What are the advantages of this solution? What are the disadvantages? You will need to be able to address the disadvantages, as well.

3. List some influential individuals or groups who might be willing to support your proposal.

4. How might you be able to win the support of some of these individuals or groups?

B Block Legal Studies - Today we start in the class, continuing our look at family law as a subject. Our focus will be on support obligations. We'll look at: spousal support and self sufficiency; and the types of child guardianship, access, and child support and we'll look at the Federal Child Support Guidelines (schedules/tables) and BC's Family Maintenance Enforcement Act. 

Spousal Support assists a spouse based on the “self-sustaining” principle. If a former spouse can look after themselves and is not adversely affected financially by the divorce then no spousal support is necessary. Spousal support is not guaranteed and it is taxable. How much spousal support you should get and how long it will last depends on the following: if you worked outside the home during the marriage or relationship; how long you lived with your spouse; if you're able to support yourself; if you are or were at home with the children; whether you earn a lot less than your spouse; and if the spouse being asked to pay is able to pay.  Under the Family Law Act, same sex couples and common law couples who are in a marriage like relationship for a period of two (2) years can apply for an Order of spousal support from the other party (yesterday's blog entry had details about the 3 models of support: contractual support, compensatory support, and non-compensatory support).  If a person is applying for spousal support under the Family Law Act, they must do so within 2 years after they have ceased living together in that minimum 2-year relationship.

In BC the Family Law Act deals with guardianship, access and support and its guiding principle is: 

“What is in the best interest of the child?” 

• Needs (emotional, physical, mental) 
• Stable home 
• Keeping siblings together
• Maintaining parent-child relations
• Religious issues
• Parenting ability / conduct
• Extended family
• The wishes of the child (depending on age – must be over 12 but at 16 you can make the decision on your own) 

Guardianship is the term we use rather than custody and a judge’s decision is NEVER final – guardianship is fluid – a custody order can be changed at any time. There are two types of guardianship:  

1. Sole – one parent maintains all responsibilities for the child(ren). 
2. Joint – also known as shared parenting where both parents share the responsibilities for the child(ren) 

 Access refers to the visiting rights of parents with their child(ren): reasonable (flexible); defined (set in stone); supervised. Parents have a duty under the law to support their children, even if one parent doesn't see or take care of the children. The money one parent pays to the other parent to help provide for the daily needs of the children is called child support or maintenance. The parent who the child lives with most of the time is entitled to child support from the other parent. If a child spends equal (or almost equal) time with both parents, the parent with the higher income will usually have to pay child support.  

When a child lives with a payor 40 percent of the time or more, that parent can argue that they don't have to pay as much support as the guidelines say. The judge or master may agree and order lower support amounts. This includes the time that you're responsible for the children, even if they're not physically with you. For example, if one parent has the children during the school week, the children are considered to be under that parent's care and control even when they're physically at school. 

Child support orders made in British Columbia are based on the Federal Child Support Guidelines. These guidelines contain clear rules that courts use to set child support as well as tables that list the amount of child support the payor has to pay. Support is based on both spouses Gross Income (total before deductions and taxes) also on how many children there are from the marriage, these amounts are based on how much they earn and how many children the payor must support. It is a monthly stipend that is paid by one parent to another up to the age of 19.

After, I have the library/learning commons booked for you to continue your work on the major civil law project that is due this Thursday; that means THREE (3) days from now.