Rule 49.09 could not be used to enforce the terms of a separation agreement, according to the Court of Appeal in Zimmerman v Buss, 2015 MBCA, since the agreement, executed three years prior to the issuance of the statement of claim, could not and did not constitute an “accepted offer” in the litigation within the rule. The court set aside the motion judge’s order for specific performance of the agreement, judgment in the amount of $145,128 (concerning an investment liquidated by the husband which the motion judge found was intended to be held as security for the payment of the parties’ joint debt) and solicitor-client costs of $11,000. The court also identified two problems with the order as taken out and noted that an order of specific performance was not available because the investment had already been liquidated.

The court has no jurisdiction, parens patriae or not, to order substitutional service of the documents the Child Abuse Committee is required to serve on suspected child abusers prior to registering them on the Child Abuse Registry, according to the judge in The Director of CFS v. J.T., D.C. and R.S., 2015 MBQB 178. In this case, the forms could not be served as the alleged offenders had fled the jurisdiction and the police could not locate them. “The “documents” are prescribed forms required to be served as part of an administrative process created by statute and regulation,” said the court, and “(w)here there is a complete legislative and regulatory code and…the intention of the legislation is…one of actual notice, there is…no gap and if there is such a gap, it is one for legislators to fill, not the court.”(paras. 2 and 25) In addition, service is relief granted within a proceeding, not a freestanding claim, so the substitutional service provisions of the QB Rules do not apply.

In Force The Child and Family Services Amendment Act (Critical Incident Reporting), S.M. 2014 c. 33 was proclaimed in force effective October 15, 2015. It requires those who work for, or provide services to, child and family services agencies/authorities to report critical incidents that have resulted in the death or serious injury of a child, and prohibits retaliation against report makers. Manitoba Regulation 98/2015, registered June 16, 2015, came into force November 1, 2015, making significant changes to Rule 70 as described in this Court of Queen’s Bench notice. Bills Several family law related bills have been introduced or re-introduced in the new session: Bill 8, The Employment Standards Code Amendment Act (Leave for Victims of Domestic Violence, Leave for Serious Injury or Illness and Extension of Compassionate Care Leave) was introduced November 25, 2015 and received second reading December 3, 2015. It amends The Employment Standards Code to allow employees who are victims of domestic violence to take up to 10 days of leave, as well as a continuous leave period of up to 17 weeks. The proposed legislation is described as innovative and groundbreaking in these blog posts: Victims of domestic violence could get paid leave in Manitoba - FindLaw Canada Manitoba Proposes Domestic Violence Leave - Slaw Bill 11, The Domestic Violence and Stalking Amendment Act, was introduced November 30, 2015 and passed second reading December 1, 2015. It proposes a number of changes to the process for obtaining protection orders and expands the definition of stalking to include use of the Internet to harass or threaten. The proposed changes make it easier for victims of domestic violence to obtain strong protection orders and make mandatory firearms bans part of all orders, according to the government news release. The law would also require the immediate referral of every protection order to federal officials, who would flag existing firearms licences and begin an investigation that would potentially revoke those licences. Bill 15, The Child and Family Services Amendment Act (Recognition of Customary Care of Indigenous Children), introduced December 2, 2015, amends The Child and Family Services Act to provide a legislative basis for supporting the provision of customary care to Indigenous children through agreements and living arrangements. The news release provides further details. Bill 16, The Children’s Advocate Act, expands the mandate of the Children’s Advocate to include providing advocacy services for children receiving or eligible to receive certain publicly funded services. It also gives the Children's Advocate broad discretion to review and investigate a serious injury or death of a child who was receiving certain services. For further information see the explanatory note and news release. Bill 33, The Family Law Reform Act (Putting Children First), introduced last spring, received second reading November 3, 2015. It proposes sweeping changes to Manitoba’s laws governing enforcement of child and spousal support, parentage, child custody and access. The Bill would repeal The Family Maintenance Act and replace it with two separate statutes: The Family Law Act, to address the rights and duties as between family members, and The Family Support Enforcement Act, which will govern support enforcement and the duties of the Maintenance Enforcement Program. The bill also proposes amendments to The Court of Queen’s Bench Act to lay the foundation for the summary, administrative family court process that forms part of the Simplified Family Justice pilot project. Highlights of the bill, detailed in the explanatory note, include: a comprehensive scheme to determine a child's legal parents, including where assisted reproduction has been used; new rules for relocation proposals; a right for children to seek their own child support; and new enforcement measures.

Have We Been Mishandling Our Alienation Cases? Let’s Try a Different Approach – in this Slaw post John-Paul Boyd suggests approaching the breakdown of parent-child relationships from the lens of attachment disruption in order to minimize parental conflict, increase the likelihood of settlement and successful co-parenting, and emphasize the overarching importance of supporting children’s wellbeing after separation. After Ashley Madison – despite no fault divorce, misconceptions about adultery remain according to the author of this Lawyers Weekly article, who argues that where emotionally charged spouses are negotiating, infidelity is a major ingredient in divorce settlements.

New Rights, New Obligations: An Introduction to the Family Homes on Reserves and Matrimonial Interests or Rights Act – This free program on the new Family Homes on Reserves and Matrimonial Interests or Rights Act still has spots available in Portage la Prairie (February 26) and Brandon (March 16). A DVD replay of the sold out Winnipeg program has also been scheduled to take place at the Law Society on January 7, 2016. Presenters will cover both substantive information about the Family Homes on Reserves and Matrimonial Interests or Rights Act, as well as practical information you will need to know when making applications under the Act. Last Curtain Call: DVD Replay Series – the Law Society is offering video replays of some of the most popular programs from 2015, including the following sessions which will be of particular interest to family law lawyers: New Rights, New Obligations (mentioned above) on January 7, 2016; Family Division Case Management Changes on January 11, 2016; and Personal Safety and Law Office Safety on January 5, 2016. Self-Represented Litigants and the Family Law File – self-represented litigants present particular challenges in the family law context. Justice Little and several experienced counsel will provide practical advice and tips for dealing with SRLs at this lunch program on April 20, 2016.

The 2016 Annual Joint Family Law program, To Line 150 & Beyond, will be held March 4, 2016, at Fort Garry Place, Winnipeg. The program will focus on key issues associated with income imputation and determination, and will include presentations by noted speakers on retirement and the potpourri of non-recurring sources of income; farming income; self-employed income; interpreting financial statements; and the unemployed and underemployed. Registration and pricing details will be posted soon.

The MBA’s 2016 Mid-Winter Conference will take place January 21-23, 2016 at the Fairmont Hotel. Back by popular demand is the full day continuing professional development session on Family Law Year in Review – Parts 1 and 2, with Lawrence Pinsky and Toronto lawyer Aaron Franks.