Adult Interdependent Relationships (Formerly Common-Law Relationships)
In Alberta, an Adult Interdependent Relationship (AIP), formerly known as a common-law relationship, is a legally recognized relationship between two adults who live together in a relationship of interdependence, without being married.
AIPs are covered by the Family Law Act (Alberta) and the Adult Interdependent Relationships Act (Alberta), giving partners rights and responsibilities similar to those of married couples, including support and property claims.
When an AIP ends, either partner can apply to court to request:
Parenting orders and child support;
Adult interdependent partner support; and
Division of property acquired during the relationship under the Family Property Act (Alberta).
Alberta’s Family Law Act contains the core principles of provincial family law. It applies to non-divorce situations, involving issues such as:
- determining the true parents of a child, including cases where the child was conceived through assisted reproduction;
- determining the guardians of a child;
- setting out the rights and obligations of parents and guardians;
- granting parenting orders in cases where guardians are living apart and cannot agree on their respective parenting responsibilities;
- determining the amount of contact between children and other people who might be important to them, such as grandparents;
- enabling enforcement of time with a child;
- determining the amount of child support payable; and
- determining whether a former adult interdependent partner is entitled to financial support, and if so, the amount and duration of that support.
The Family Law Act (Alberta) defines a person as the adult interdependent partner of another person if:
- the person has lived with the other person in a relationship of interdependence:
- for a continuous period of not less than 3 years; or
- of some permanence, if there is a child of the relationship by birth or adoption, or
- the person has entered into an adult interdependent partner agreement with the other person.
A “relationship of interdependence” means a relationship outside marriage in which any two persons:
- share one another’s lives;
- are emotionally committed to one another; and
- function as an economic and domestic unit.
The Adult Interdependent Relationships Act (Alberta) sets out factors to consider when determining whether two people function as an economic and domestic unit. They include:
- the exclusivity of the relationship;
- how they behave when it comes to household activities and living arrangements;
- how they hold themselves out to others in the community;
- the contributions they make to each other or their mutual well-being;
- the degree of financial dependence or interdependence between them;
- the care and support of children; and
- the ownership and use of property.
The only way for 2 people who are related to each other – by blood or adoption – to become adult interdependent partners is to sign an adult interdependent partner agreement.
If you are thinking about separating from your adult interdependent partner in Alberta and want to know your rights, please contact us for a free consultation at: (403) 288-0009 or by email at murray@bodnaruklaw.com