In a sigh of relief heard round the Twitterverse, the “Will they?
Won’t they?” couple of 2012 is rumoured this week to have rekindled
their dwindling flame. According to reports, Robert Pattinson and Kristen
Stewart have been meeting in secret, with definite plans to reconcile.
Following news of Stewart’s public cheating scandal with Hollywood
director Rupert Sands, the future of love’s young dream seemed dismal
at best. In fact, in the days immediately following news of the affair,
both Pattinson and Stewart reportedly moved out of the Los Angeles home
they had been sharing.
While Stewart’s own commitment to reconciliation was evident from the
outset – her public apology to Pattinson was widely published – the young
actor has remained relatively silent about his feelings surrounding the
relationship, and particularly whether he intends to reconcile with Stewart.
While the famous young couple is unmarried, their predicament is nevertheless
a common one and raises important questions surrounding the impact of
reconciliation, particularly in cases of formal separation.
In Ontario, couples who attempt reconciliation may affect the date upon
which they can obtain a divorce and the valuation of their net family
property by doing so. Section 3(b)(ii) of the
Divorce Act provides that spouses can attempt to reconcile for one period not exceeding
90 days, or several periods that total 90 days, without altering their
official date of separation.
The date of separation is a particularly important milestone in family
law proceedings, as this date effectively starts the clock running with
respect to the date upon which the court can grant an Order for divorce.
That is, barring cases of adultery and intolerable cruelty, parties seeking
a divorce in Ontario must live separate and apart for one year before
they can be granted a divorce.
As such, the official date of separation plays a key role in determining
when parties will be eligible to obtain a divorce, and indeed how they
will structure their living arrangements, finances, relationships and
childcare arrangements in the interim.
Similarly, reconciling parties may impact the date upon which their assets
and liabilities are valued for the purposes of equalizing their net family
property. Under the
Family Law Act, which governs the division of marital property, the valuation date is
defined as “the date the spouses separate and there is no reasonable
prospect they will resume cohabitation”.
Notably, the
Family Law Act does not provide a grace period during which the parties can reconcile
without interrupting the valuation date. As such, reconciling can have
important implications for both, the date upon which a divorce can be
granted and the valuation of net family property.
Clearly, although reconciliation is often a favourable outcome, and one
that is even encouraged by some legislation, it can have serious legal,
financial and personal implications if things should go awry.