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and many individuals aren't entitled to CPP, for example, adds Georgina Carson, a partner with MacDonald & Partners LLP in Toronto and chairwoman of the Ontario Bar Association's family law section. McLeod says it is a political decision as to whether or not parental support should remain in B.C.'s Family Relations Act, in terms of deciding whether or not impoverished parents should look first to the taxpayer for support or their family. "It seems to me to be somewhat incongruous that you would have a law that says if a couple separates, then the impoverished spouse looks to the other spouse first for support before the welfare system; if a couple splits and there are children, then the children have a right of support from the par- ents before they're supported by wel- fare. And it seems to me that parents, if they're impoverished, should also have a right to look to their family for sup- port before they look to their fellow taxpayers," he says. In Ontario, there haven't been any requests to repeal s. 32 of the Family Law Act because it has been used in very limited and appropriate circumstances, says Sadvari. "If it starts coming in the door, we're going to start talking about it and there may be then the same sort of reaction as in B.C., encouraging govern- ments to do something about it, but it's been so limited that it just hasn't raised that red flag in Ontario," he says. Carson agrees, saying, "My sense is that s. 32 is not going to disappear in Ontario and that we may well see additional claims in the future. But the good news is that most families have an intact fabric of connection and we're not going to be seeing a lot of parents running out and suing their kids." In Ontario and Prince Edward Island, there is also the qualifier that the par- ental-support law can only apply to a parent who has cared for or provided support to a child, says Brian Waddell, a partner with Stewart McKelvey in 2 Bloor Street West, Suite 2603, Toronto, ON M4W 3E2 Tel: (416) 961-5612 Fax: (416) 961-6158 Email our partners at: sranot@marmerpenner.com jdebresser@marmerpenner.com a 2/17/10 10:10:57 AM ntitled-2 1 Charlottetown and the Canadian Bar Association national family law branch section chairman for P.E.I. "You won't necessarily get into sort of a claim by a parent who hasn't seen the child in 25 years suddenly coming out of the wood- work and making a claim. There has to be that sort of connection there, where the parent has cared for the child, it's a quid pro quo," he says. Other considerations in these cases include the parent's need and the child's ability to pay, taking their other respon- sibilities into account, such as minor children. The "big unknown," says Sadvari, is whether parental support is going to become a more normal type of claim where there's the ability to pay and a need, even if that need is to go on nicer vacations, as opposed to putting bread on the table. "At this point, we really don't know whether it's going to explode and become a new industry for lawyers or it's still going to be the rarity that it has been to date," he says. NEWLY REVISED & UPDATED FOR 2011 Don't spend valuable time and resources updating your precedents when DIVORCEmate has already done the work for you! Separation Agreements and Marriage Contract/Agreement Revisions have been made to existing clauses and commentary, plus we've added new clauses and schedules (including a stream- lined "Statement of Income, Assets and Debts/Liabilities"), based on current case law and legislation including: easy-to-usecomprehensive well-drafted To Order: Call or visit us online today! DIVORCEmate One...From Marriage Contracts to Divorce Judgments and Everything in Between. Toll Free: 1-800-653-0925 or 416-718-3461 x446 e: sales@divorcemate.com www.divorcemate.com www.CANADIAN Lawyermag.com M A RCH 2011 41 2/15/11 3:21:10 PM